It's Tuesday, lunchtime, and as usual I'm sitting next to my girlfriend and her friends, being completely ignored, also as usual.

Annoyed, I look around and watch as Jade and her group of friends walk to their table. Briefly, I look over at Kiandra, who is far too busy talking to her friends to notice that I'm totally annoyed, and decide to just leave.

In fact, she doesn't even look at me as I stand up and grab my backpack.

I roll my eyes. This is so typical, and yet I am disappointed. I was once so excited that Kiandra would want to be with me, of all people. Where did that feeling go?

My gaze turns to Jade. That's where that feeling has gone.

I slowly walk to her table and stop in front of it.

"Hey, can I join you guys?", I ask with a nervous undertone in my voice.

Jade lifts her head and looks at me expressionlessly.

Tori, on the other hand, smiles broadly at me.
"Sure you can, come here."

She scoots a little so I can sit down between Beck and her.

I smile gratefully at both of them, trying not to let on that it hurts me that Jade is so dismissive of me.

Of course, I didn't expect exuberant joy, but at least more than an expressionless face.

Nevertheless, I feel her gaze on me, but I don't dare to return it.

The others continue their conversation while I sit quietly. A few times Tori or Beck asks me something, but that's all.

I can't help but feel like an outsider everywhere I go. Maybe I should just cling to Kiandra after all, it's a safer way than chasing after a girl who will never like me.

Hesitantly, I stand up.

"I think I'll be going now, but thanks for letting me be here."

I glance around briefly, my gaze lingering on Jade for a moment. She just stares at me and I turn to leave.

"Y/N, wait, we're in the same class now. I'm coming with you."

Surprised, I turn around as Jade stands up and takes her bag.

I can't help but smile a little.

Quietly, we walk into the school building together.

"Wait, since when do we have the same class now? I've never seen you there before," I asked into the silence.

"Oh. Yeah I lied."

Confused, I looked at her and stopped.

"I don't understand. Then why didn't you just stay with your friends?"

"Tori and I aren't friends, Robbie I only tolerate because the others like him, and Cat is basically a pet. The only one who might be anything like a friend is Andre," Jade snorts, who has also stopped now and is looking at me.

I withstand her gaze. "But why are you coming with me? If you don't like those people, then I doubt you like me."

Jade turns around, probably to see if anyone is there.

When she doesn't see anyone, she turns back to me.

"I like you."

My heart beats faster as soon as she says there. Which I'm pretty sure she means more in a friendly way. But anyway, being liked by Jade is worth a lot. She pretty much doesn't like anyone.

I smile a little.

"I like you, too. Maybe we can be friends?"

She looks at me blankly.

"No, Y/N, I like you."

"Yeah, you said that before," I reply, a little confused.

"And I thought you were smart. With your good grades and all.", She said rolling her eyes and turning to leave.

I gather all my courage, take a step forward and hold her by the wrist.

She stops and slowly turns back to me.

"Don't you want to explain this to me?", I ask nervously.The corners of her mouth twitch up slightly before she answers me.

"I don't want to be friends with you."

My heart pounds up to my throat, so hard I feel like it's about to jump out of my chest.

"Wait, you like me but don't want to be friends with me. Is this a Jade West thing? Do I need to understand that?"

She grins slightly.

"Yeah, it might be good if you understood. Because this 'Jade West thing' is specifically about you."

A brief moment of silence settles over us.

"Y/N you don't know how bad I feel."

"You feel bad? Why?"

"Because I'm having more than naughty thoughts about a girl with a girlfriend."

Jade eyes me closely, and I don't know what I'm saying until I say it.

"You feel bad? I'm the girl with a girlfriend who has naughty thoughts about another girl."

We both looked into each other's eyes. I didn't like that Jade was so hard to interpret. With everyone else now, I could have told exactly what was going on inside them. Not with Jade, never. But I think that was one reason why I liked her so much for so long.

"Why are you with her?"

"I'm an outsider. Nobody cares about me, I don't have any friends, and before Kiandra got with me, nobody even saw me. She brought me out from the bottom and pulled me up. She always just liked me that way, she never needed a reason."
I sigh. "I think before, it was just so overwhelming to have someone like her like me."

Jade nods slowly. "But she's not the person you really like, is she?" she asked.

"What do you mean?"

"I haven't heard you say you love her once until now."

I swallow hard, but remain silent.

"Just so you know, before Kiandra and you were together, I liked you too. I beat myself up for ages for not telling you. It was too late," she said, shrugging.

"I liked you long before Kiandra came along, too," I laughed. "And during that, too."

"And now?"

"Now, too."

She groaned in annoyance.

I raise my eyebrows.

"You know you're pretty confusing, Jade?"

"You are confusing." she hissed back before taking a deep breath.

"It's just, things would have been so much easier if you had said you didn't like me anymore. Then I could have left and never had to think about it again," she says as her face contorts.

"And now?", I ask hesitantly.

Jade takes a step closer to me.

"You tell me."

Her voice is soft but firm, and I feel my nervousness through my entire stomach. I've never felt this way about Kiandra. So smitten.

I clear my throat.

"This might sound really crappy because I have a girlfriend, but I've never liked anyone as much as I like you. I don't want to stay with Kiandra just because it's the safer option. I want you," I murmur nervously, avoiding eye contact.

"I'd like to kiss you."

Surprised by her directness, I look at face and think I misheard.

"Excuse me?"

"All I can think about right now is kissing you." Her blue-green eyes pierce mine.

Maybe the thought of me having a girlfriend should have stopped me. But it didn't.

I take a step toward Jade, put my hands around her neck, pull her to me, and kiss her.

Without hesitation, she returns my kiss hungrily as she pushes me determinedly backwards until my back hits a locker. Her hands move to my hips and wrap around them.

In my life, I have never felt as alive as I do now.

Slowly, Jade disengages from me, while our faces are still quite close.

Breathing heavily, she looks me in the eye.

"Please break up with your girlfriend."

"Oh you bet I will," I reply without hesitation and pull her to me once more to kiss her again.

A/N:
Back from the Dead :)