The Bet *Contagious

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If you want to know Sophia’s birthday, the history of the surnames of the characters, and your request about their picture, read the Author’s Note at the end of the chapter.

Thank you to all my new fans and to my old fans too! =D

 

Happy Reading! (:

Chapter 14 *Contagious*

~Drake

“Thanks,” Pie says. 

I shrug like it doesn’t matter but in reality, it does.

There are only few people who aren’t always saying thank you but when they do, they really mean it. Pie is one of them.

I don’t know why I want to please her. Is it only for the bet? What else can it be?

I feel a little bit awkward towards her though, because I just put a blanket on her shoulders without her permission. I’m a guy; of course, I don’t want her to shiver in my presence. If this situation happens to other guys, they will just put their arms around the girl. I can’t do that. There’s no doubt that Pie will freak out. She might call me a maniac, a jerk, and well, more other names. That means I will have a hard time making her fall in love with me.

It’s funny how I can speak and act normally around Pie but in reality, I just do it for the sake of the bet. There comes a time when I wonder will I ever talk to her if not for the bet? Will I know that she exists?

Glancing at her beside me, I see she’s looking peacefully at the stars in the sky. I didn’t know she likes gazing at them. I realize that I don’t really know her. Well, I guess this is the getting to know each other part.

“Pie,” I say.

She doesn’t seem to hear me because she doesn’t respond when I call her name. I wonder what she’s thinking. She looks thoughtful staring at the stars above us. Does she even spare a thought of me?

Of course, says my subconscious mind.

As if, I thought sarcastically. To stop it from commenting more, I turn to Pie again.

“Pie,” I repeat. Our bare arms almost touch lightly because of the proximity of where we are sitting.

She yelps in surprise and looks startle.

A smirk forms on my lips. I guess I interrupt a major thought running inside her head.

“What?” she asks, and snuggles close to the blanket I gave her.

Does she really feel cold? Why don’t I feel it?

It’s because you’re numb.

Geez, stop it already! I think I’m going crazy with this voice inside my head.

What to say, what to say?

Clearing my throat, I start, “Are you comfortable in your room now?”

She looks taken aback with my question. I am either. It’s the first one to pop in my head.  Why can I easily think of an idea and a plan but cannot start a normal conversation?

“Yes,” Pie says finally. “Um, I can sleep peacefully now.”

“That’s good.”

“Thanks to you.”

She thanked me again! That’s two for tonight. “You are welcome,” I say.

After that, we don’t talk again. I chastise myself in my head. Why can’t I think of a decent topic? Like, what’s her interest? If I can keep her talking, I can get to know her personally. That will help me win the bet.

On second thought, am I just doing this to win? Or maybe a part of me really wants to know her? Perhaps it’s because of –

A soft chuckle interrupts my line of thoughts.

“What’s funny?” I ask Pie curiously.

“You asked the wrong question,” she says, a smile forming on her lips.

Rolling my eyes, I ask, “Who?”

You,” she says obviously, her dimple coming into view.

“What about me?” I think this already happened before. Is dé jà vu visiting me?

She smirks.  “You’re always teasing me about daydreaming and you always do it too.” 

“I do not,” I mutter. What is she trying to imply?

“Yes, you do,” she says smugly, her eyes lights up in amusement.

If she wants to play a game, I will play with her. “How do you know?”

“Um. I . . uh . . I um, noticed it.” She looks away because a blush is making its way on her cheeks. She twirls her loose hair in her fingers nervously. When she stutters, there will surely be a blush on her cheeks after.

She notices me daydreaming? How? But I do not daydream, I’m just thinking! And they’re not even the same! If I explain it to her, she’ll tell me I’m defensive and –

“You’re doing it again,” she says. A grin makes its way on her mouth.

“Whatever,” I mutter darkly.

That ends our conversation again.

Thanks to you, chastises my subconscious mind. I just ignore it, thinking that if I leave it alone, it will not bother me anymore.

 I notice that Pie’s in the mood right now. Smiling looks good on her.

“Draky,” Pie says.

“What?”

“What course will you get in college?”

Her question catches me off guard. She’s not looking at me. Her gaze is far away. I wonder if I’ll ever see the same things she sees in her own eyes.

“I still don’t know,” I answer.

“Why do you not know?”

“Because I don’t know?” I joke.

She’s not smiling, that’s why I know she’s serious.

Taking a deep breath, I tell her, “Truth is, I don’t know if I’ll continue my study after high school.”

She turns to me with wide eyes full of concern. “Why?”

Even though it’s just a one word, her voice catches at the end.

“Because.” I sigh. “Look at my grades! I don’t know if a university will accept me!”

Pie pulls her feet off the pool and turns so she’s sitting, facing me. Swallowing the lump in my throat, I do the same.

“Andre is helping you study, right?” Pie asks softly. “And I’m still going to tutor you in Literature.”

“Really?” I ask dubiously.

“If you want, I can help you with your other subjects too, if you’re having a hard time with them.”

Something tugs at the corner beside my chest. Looking away from her, I say, “I don’t need your pity.”

Her mouth hangs open and she looks shock at my accusation at her. “I don’t pity you.”

“Sure you don’t,” I mutter.

“Why are you acting like this?” she asks. “One minute you’re nice, and then the next  . . .”

 “I’m not acting,” I snap.

“I just want to help you. If you don’t want it, fine!” She turns away from me and puts her feet back on the pool carelessly, splashing water lightly beside us. “Sorry,” she mutters angrily. She hides her face in her hair so that I won’t see her expression.

I don’t believe she pities me. I just want to say it because of the guilt I feel inside me. She wants to help me, but what will I repay her for her kindness? I’m just going to hurt her in the end. Even the thought of hurting her makes me flinch now. Perhaps wanting to be close to her will make it more unbearable.

Looking at her in the corner of my eye, I see that her teeth are gritted together. Her eyes are fixed towards nothing in particular. Her fists are clenched on her lap.

She’s trying hard not to cry.

Oh. I guess even if I ignore my subconscious mind, it will not stop.

“Pie,” I begin, “I’m sorry I snapped at you.”

“Whatever,” she mumbles, not sparing me a glance.

“I didn’t mean anything I said to you a while ago. I . . uh, I . .” Good, I’m stuttering too. Pie tainted me. Maybe it’s contagious. I just have to hang out with her everyday and then I’ll stutter in every sentence I’ll say.

Taking a deep breath, I continue, “If your offer is still up, I’ll be glad if you'll tutor me.”

“Really?” she asks, looking at me right in the eye.

“Yes,” I say. I wonder why her eyes lights up.

“Good.” She smiles, forgetting my stupid outburst earlier. 

Why does she wants to help me study? I forgot to ask her what she wants to be in the future.

“It’s getting late,” Pie says suddenly. “There’s school tomorrow.”

“Thanks for reminding me,” I mutter under my breath.

She rolls her eyes and says, “I’m going inside. Are you staying here?”

 I shake my head. “I don’t want to be late.”

“Good,” she repeats.

I have no doubt she wants me to go to a university and continue my studies for a better future.

Pie stands up and as she takes her first step, she gets off balance. Her right foot slides on the surface beside the pool where the water splashed a while ago, making the path slippery.

Before she falls on the pool, I grab her hand impulsively and put my other arm around her to stop the impact.

Her back bends and I’m looking at her face a few centimeters away from mine. Her pale blue eyes are staring at my own. I can feel her breath surrounding me. Shaking my head to clear my thoughts, I steady her to her feet.

“Thank you,” she says, out of breath.

That’s three already!

“What?” she asks, a confused expression on her face. “What’s three already?”

Er, I don’t know I said that aloud.

“That’s nothing,” I say sheepishly.

“Okay,” she says slowly, not clearly convinced.

Phew! I almost get caught!

I look down and realize that I’m still holding her hand. I let it go like its electricity sending wave shocks to my body.

-----

As the lightning strikes, I see a silhouette beside my window. It’s raining so hard, I can’t see who it is. The electricity went off a few minutes ago because of the thunder. My heart thumps a little loudly in my chest as I try to see who the person is. Did a thief enter Andre’s house?

When the light suddenly flickers to life for a second, I see who that is. A sigh of relief escapes from my mouth when I see that it’s just Pie.

“What are you doing here?” My voice is stupidly shaking so I clear my throat.

She tilts her head to the side and walks a few feet towards me.

I haven’t even seen her enter my room! She’s wearing a light beige night gown and her usual straight hair is now flowing curly on her shoulders.

“What is this about?” I ask, getting up from my bed.

Why isn’t she talking? Her hands are clasps behind her back, like she’s holding something precious there. Looking at her face, I see it’s expressionless.

“Are you trying to seduce me?” I tease her.

Maybe she planned it with Andre.  A laugh escapes from my mouth as I watch her walks, no; it’s more like glides, towards me. Give it to me to laugh in this kind of situation.

Pie looks like an avenging angel. What happened to the Pie I talked to a while ago?

“Okay, stop it now,” I say, “It isn’t funny.”

To my astonishment, she glares at me with eyes pure of hate.  “How dare you play with me?” She growls.

Taking a step back, I can’t help but notice that she practiced well. “I haven’t done anything to you.” I know I’m lying, but look at her! She’s not Pie!

“I trusted you!” She yells, moving slowly now because there’s only a few feet in front of us. “I even liked you! You know I’ve been through a lot, and you still continue to play this game!”

Oh. So she knew about the bet? But how? Only Andre and I only knew about that. Andre would never betray me. So how did she know? Are we that careless? Am I not a good actor? What am I going to do?

“Look Pie,” I start.

“Pie?” She snaps. “You stupid idiot, don’t ever call me that!”

It’s like nature is with her because when she speaks, the rumbling of the clouds goes with her.

Taking a deep breath, I say, “Sorry.”

She scoffs. “Sorry?! The damage is already done! You cannot do anything about it!” She shakes her head and glides towards me.

I want to step back again when my back connects with the wall. I have to calm her. She looks nothing like the Pie I know. It’s like someone else is using her body.

“Pie,” I begin. And then I know I said the wrong thing because –

“You deserve to die,” she hisses, and lunges towards me.

I realize too late what the precious thing on her hands is. Taken by surprise, I just watch her as she strikes the knife in my chest.

*****

The song is The Shot Heard ‘Round The World by Boys Like Girls (:one of my favorite boy bands:Banner by LittleMissIronic.

About the birthday of Sophia, you’ll know it when the right time comes :P

I got the surname of Drake from Taylor Swift and the surname of Sophia from Taylor’s name (:I bet you already guessed it:) I didn’t really think of Avril Lavigne when I get the surname of Andre. It was last minute thinking and I was browsing facebook when I saw the profile of Ryan Christophe Lavigne. I thought, “Why not?” I used his surname then :>

About the pictures of the other characters, feel free to imagine them in your head (I already gave their physical appearance). The only reason Drake has a picture is because when I started writing this story way back in September 2010, I saw Ryan. And even though I’m using his picture, the Drake in my mind isn’t him; albeit they almost look the same.

Whoa! It’s a long Author’s Note! Thank you for reading it =D

Thank you for reading my story <3

You are reading the story above: TeenFic.Net