This chapter is more of a filler but I swear it'll get more interesting. I'm just trying to show that Sage is breaking away from what her father has always taught her and that she's becoming her own person. It might be a tad bit boring but I hope you still like it. 

Comment or vote to let me know if you liked it or not. Enjoy!!

Chapter nine

“Hello?” I mumbled answering my phone.

“Why are you still asleep?” Kalina nearly shouted into the phone.

I rolled over to look at my alarm clock. “It’s only ten.”

“Ya but I thought you always got up at eight and no latter.”

“I guess I was just tired and I turned my alarm off. Give me a break it’s Sunday.”

“Ok, well anyway would you want to go shopping with your fabulously lonely friend?”

“Hmmm, that depends.”

“On what?”

“Can we get breakfast first?”

About an hour and half later Kalina and I were walking around the local mall.

“Ok that would look amazing on you.” She said pointing to a black dress in Macys.

I stopped to look at it. It was a black tank top dress with a floral type of pattern and it stopped mid-thigh. “I don’t know.” I said letting the material run through my fingers.

“Why not? It’s not even twenty dollars.”

“My dad doesn’t like me to wear a whole lot of black.”

“Then put a cardigan or a belt on it with some colorful shoes.” I didn’t reply to her I just looked at the dress. It was cute. “Does your dad really control what you wear?”

“He tries to…he doesn’t like when my clothes are ‘skimpy’ but I usually wear them anyway. I just listen when he tells me not to dress like a ‘delinquent’.”

“A delinquent?”

“Ya, you know a lot of dark colors, ripped clothes, studded clothes stuff like that.”

“Well do you like how you dress now?” She asked leaning up against a clothes rack.

I looked down at the clothes I was wearing now. I was wearing blue jeans with simple black heels a white tank top that fanned out at my waste and a black belt that was around my ribs.

“I’m ok with it.” I nodded.

“But do you like it?” She persisted. “Do you enjoy how you dress?”

I thought about all the models I’d scene in magazines that dressed edgy or about how Aaron had asked why I never dressed lazy. “I guess sometimes I wish I could dress a little bit differently.”

“Then buy it!” She said grabbing my size and handing it to me. “You have your own money right?”

“Ya that my dad gives me.” I laughed.

“Well your dad can’t control everything in your life.”

“I don’t know.” I sighed. “He already doesn’t like Aaron and he’s never liked me being into cheerleading and dancing.”

“Sage, you are your own person do what makes you happy.”

“Ok…I’m gonna get it.” I said smiling.

**********

Later that day I was putting all my new clothes in my closet before my dad could see them, when I heard the doorbell ring.

I skipped down the stairs and past my dad’s office where I saw him typing on his computer like his life depended on it.

I opened the front door to see Aaron standing on my doorstep with white lilies. “Hey.” He smiled.

“Um, hi.” I said pushing my hair behind my ear before taking the lilies from him. “What are you doing here?”

“I was hoping you’d come over for dinner.”

I glanced behind me to make sure my dad wasn’t there before slowly nodding. “Ya, I’d love to.” I grabbed my jacket off the hook that was hanging by the door before closing the door as silently as I could.

Aaron grabbed my hand and didn’t let go until we were inside his kitchen. “Tada.” He said looking at the smile on my face.

“Aaron…you didn’t have to do this.” I said looking around. There were rose petals on the table and candles everywhere. On the table, the counter, the stove, the windowsill; they were the only thing that lit the room. He pulled out my chair for me before walking around and sitting in his own.

He picked up his wine glass and it was filled with a golden liquid. “It’s sparkling cider.” He said laughing before taking a drink.

“What no alcohol?” I said laughing in return.

“I’ll take you drinking sometime if you like.” He offered.

“Maybe some time.” I said nodding. “So is this steak?” I asked poking the meat on my plate with my fork.

“Ya believe it or not I cooked it myself.”

“Really?”

“Well if you count heating it up cooking, then ya.”

I laughed. “I don’t think that counts.”

“Couldn’t you just say it counts for me?”

“Alright.” I said smiling and leaning across the table to kiss him.

“So I was thinking after dinner we could watch a movie?” He asked hopefully.

“Only if I get to pick the movie.”

“That sounds reasonable.”

Practically three hours later we were curled up on his black leather couch watching the credits for The Notebook go by.

“See that wasn’t so bad, was it?” I laughed while slightly shoving his arm.

“How was that good? It was sad!” He protested.

“But it was happy too! It was a love story and they ended up together and even died together.”

“She forgot all of it though! So in the end it didn’t matter.”

“She remembered in the end when they died together.”

“But half of the time she didn’t remember…why do girls like such sad movies?”

“Because they have good story lines and are usually great romances.”

“They’re not great if someone dies.”

“Ya they are, they’re just tragic…maybe sometime I’ll make you watch the Titanic with me.”

“Hopefully you’ll forget about it.” He joked kissing my cheek.

“What? You don’t want to comfort me when I’m sad?” I said before kissing him again.

“Mm…” He said before pulling away slightly. “Only if that’s the kind of comfort you need.”

He kissed me again and his tongue danced with mine as his hand got tangled in my hair. He grabbed my hips and pulled me into his lap before kissing my neck. I pulled back while holding on to his shoulder with one hand while I raked my hair back with my other. I bit my lip before catching a glance of the clock on the wall behind us.

It said 11:30.

“Shit!” I said under my breath before nearly jumping off his lap.

“What?” He asked sounding dazed.

“My dad is going to be so pissed.” I said before grabbing my jacket and nearly running to the door. “See you tomorrow at school?” I asked

“Ya, do you want a ride?”

“Sure.” I nodded before standing on my tip toes to kiss him. “Bye Aaron.” I smiled before opening the door behind me and jumping down the porch.

“Bye Sage.” I heard him whisper before I raced to my front door.

I reached for the front door handle and slowly turned it and opened the door as silently as I could. The lights were all out so I figured my dad was asleep. I closed the door behind me not daring to make a sound when the light flicked on and my dad’s angry voice filled the room. “Sage?” He snapped as I put a hand to my chest and shrieked.

“Sorry dad…I thought you were asleep.”

“Where were you?”

“Aaron invited me over for dinner…and we watched a movie. Sorry I lost track of time.”

He sighed before rubbing his eyes with his hand. “Just go to bed Sage.”

“I’m sorry dad I-“

“Sage!” He yelled at me.

I ducked my head before sprinting up the stairs and slamming my door once I got to my room.

***********

“Hey dad I’m going to school.” I said grabbing an apple off the table.

“Ok have fun-“ He stopped mid-sentence when he glanced up at me. “What are you wearing?”

I looked down at what I was wearing trying to figure out why he was so upset.

I had on the black dress Kalina had convinced me to buy and I’d put a slim white belt around my waist. I had on a few silver bangles, my hair was crimped and I wore black converse wedges. Kalina and I had found them in a shoe store and I thought they were just about the coolest things ever.

“I bought these at the mall on Sunday.”

“Go change.” He said with a hard look on his face.

“Why?” I said scrunching my eyebrows in confusion.

“You look like a troubled teenager.”

“A ‘troubled teenager’ dad? Really? I’m in a freaking dress.”

“You’re in all black and that dress doesn’t leave much to the imagination. Not to mention those shoes are the kinds of shoes rebels wear.”

“Whatever dad. I’m not changing, there’s no time. So bye, I’m going to school.” I didn’t give him time to reply before I hurried for the front door swinging my back pack over my shoulder in the process.

I let the door slam behind me before I rushed to Aaron’s truck. After I’d gotten in I was pretty sure I saw my dad in the window.

“Hey.” Aaron said while leaning towards me and giving me a quick kiss on the cheek.

“Hi.” I said turning towards him.

“You look hot today.” I raised an eyebrow at him. “Not that you don’t look hot everyday…you just look extra hot today.”

I laughed at his hurried excuse. “Thanks.”

“So your first cheerleading competition is this weekend right?” He asked once we were halfway to school.

“Yep, it’s on Saturday.” I nodded.

“You want a ride there?”

“Normally I would say yes but all the cheerleaders have to take a bus there.”

“Well I’ll be in the audience, ok?”

“You don’t have to go.” I mumbled.

“I want to. If it’s important to you then I want to be there for you.”

“Ok.” I smiled as we pulled up to school.

“Not to mention how sexy you look when you dance.” He said with his signature smirk. I made a mocking face before lightly smacking his arm while I laughed.

“You’re so immature.”