Chapter 40: Chapter 40

Rylie's POV

School was over fairly quick. I'd spent the rest of it all alone, barely listening in class. I only saw Blake once after recess and he seemed a bit aloof. Still not in my best mood, I assumed he was just occupied with whatever plans be had in mind for this afternoon so I didn't bother asking.

The school bell rang just as classes ended and I trudged up to my locker. After grabbing my things, I groaned dramatically and headed in the direction of the fountain.

Whatever Blake had for me better be good.

On getting to the fountain, I saw that Blake wasn't there. I was taken aback a bit and I wasn't very happy. Assuming that he was hiding somewhere, I looked around but didn't see him. Taking a deep breath, I made my way to a bench.

Seconds passed and turned into minutes and soon, I'd been at the fountain for thirty minutes. During that time, I'd tried calling Blake but he didn't answer. Tired of waiting and honestly a bit hurt, I slung my backpack over my shoulder and dragged my feet in the direction of home.

Great. Exactly what I needed. Yet another disappointment. Damn you Blake!

Blake's POV

On getting to the alley behind the teacher's lounge where I was supposed to meet the person who sent the note, I could see why he/she picked this place. A place as shady as this one was definitely not a place I would be coming back to anytime soon.

I paced nervously, anxious to get out of this place and back to Rylie. She's probably at the fountain right now, waiting for me. Ugh! I need to be there with her not here, waiting for a stranger who was seeming like a no-show.

After waiting for a few more minutes, I was prepared to leave. This was obvious a waste of time.

I'd just turned around when a voice behind me stopped me in my tracks. I turned to see a hooded figure, head bowed standing a few feet away from me.

"I apologise for the delay," the figure said and I could tell that it was a girl.

"No worries," I responded, still trying to wrap my mind around the whole thing. "So, you said you had something for me?"

"Yes. Proof of who has been behind Rylie's accidents," she murmured.

"Yes. So... what's the proof?" I asked a bit impatient. I really wanted to get back to Rylie.

She said nothing, instead reaching into one of the pockets of her jacket and withdrawing an envelope. She stretched her hand forward. I looked at her then the envelope and took it skeptically.

Then with her still in front of me, I tore open in the envelope and just like that, my suspicions were confirmed; it was Jessie!

The first picture was a clear shot of her throwing her basketball at Rylie. The second picture was one of her standing with a smug smile as a tall figure stuffed Rylie in a locker. There were a few more pictures but it all confirmed one thing; that she was the one behind everything that had been happening to Rylie.

The proof was as clear as day. I mean, I'd always known it was her but the trouble had always been getting proof to nail her.

"How did you get these?" I asked, waving the pictures in my hand.

"The school's CCTV footage."

I could have punched myself right then and there. Why didn't I think of that? Then all this would have been settled a long time ago. All those detective movies for nothing.

"Can I keep this?" I inquired, pointing to the pictures.

"I suppose. Just use it wisely."

"Trust me, I will," I mused with a determined look. The girl nodded and turned to leave. "Wait, who are you and why did you help me?"

"You'll find that out soon enough and as for why I helped you, let's just say we have a bit of a common interest. I want Jessie out of the picture just as much as you."

And just like that, she was gone. I stood staring at where she previously stood, my mind swirling with ideas. Shaking my head to clear my thoughts, I stuffed the pictures into my pocket and hurried away, my destination clear.

I arrived at the fountain but found that she wasn't there. Checking my phone, I could see that a lot of time had passed. School had ended nearly an hour ago.

Turning, I ran to my car and got in. I revved the engine and drove as fast as I could, home. Once my car was parked, I didn't waste time before getting out and running up to the door of the Myers' home. After tapping the doorbell aggressively several times, Rylie's mom opened the door. I gave her a very hurried greeting and rushed up the stairs to Rylie's room.

The door was locked so I resorted to the only thing I could do: knock. I balled my fist and knocked on Rylie's door.

Her voice came from inside. "For the last time, Mom, I'm hungry."

My throat tightened as I spoke, "Rylie, it's not your mom. It's me... Blake. Can you please open the door so we can talk?"

A brief silence followed my question. I hoped the silence meant that she was considering my request and I hoped she would answer.

"There's nothing to talk about, Blake," came the deep sigh.

"Rylie, please listen. I'm sorry. Something came up that I couldn't ignore. Please let me in. I have something to show you," I pleaded.

"I don't want to see it, Blake or you, for that matter...at least for now," the last bit was added in a shaky voice, as though an afterthought.

"Rylie, please, I'm sorry. I truly am," I begged, almost going on my knees.

"Blake, please! If you like me even just a little bit, you'll understand that I need to be left alone... please?" her voice seemed to break as she spoke and even though I didn't want to, I found myself backing away from the door, muttering a low "Okay" as I made my way down the stairs.

Sitting on my bed a little while after, Rylie's words came back to mind.

“If you like me even just a little bit, you'll understand that I need to be left alone...” she'd said. Like her? If only she knew just how deep my feelings for her were... and it was exactly because of those deep feelings that I couldn't leave her alone. That's right. I wasn't going to stop until I got Rylie to forgive me again.

Rylie's POV

After few minutes passed without a word from Blake, I knew that he had left... just like I told him to. Still, I couldn't resist the urge to confirm if he really left. Somehow, a part of me was still hoping that he hadn't left, hoping that he decided to wait for me afterall...

I unlocked the door with the key and pulled it open. I stuck my head outside and could instantly tell that Blake had left afterall. I closed the door with a dismal sigh.

I could blame Blake for leaving but that would be unfair considering the fact that I asked him to leave myself. Why did I do that when it was so clear that I wanted him here?

Maybe it was out of fear that if I let him in, we would end up kissing again. Till this moment, I could still see it all in my head: the feel of his lips against mine, the hammering of my heart against my chest as our tongues met in a dance of passion, the heat that radiated off his body at that passionate encounter, the feel of his ripped body against mine... I could remember vividly every single detail of that moment. It seemed so far away and yet so close.

I shook my head to clear the vivid thoughts in my head. Chances were it would never happen again, especially considering today's events.

I gave a tired groan as I fell on my bed, glancing once at my open window which sat directly opposite Blake's, before turning my head to the other side and closing my eyes, eventually falling into a restless sleep.

***

A loud bang awoke me from my slumber. I tried ignoring the sound but when it came again, I found myself opening my eyes and sitting up. I sleepily rubbed my eyes, stifling a yawn as I padded towards my window where the sound seemed to be coming from.

The sound came again and I winced as my head throbbed. I took a few seconds to recollect myself before throwing open the windows. I stuck my head out and looked down and sure enough, below stood Blake Weston. All of a sudden, my head didn't hurt so bad anymore. I fought to keep a smile from showing on my face and maintained what I hoped was a bored expression.

"Aren't you seriously scared that someone's going to hear you?" I reprimanded coarsely.

"Nah. It wouldn't matter anyway," he grinned.

"What are you doing here anyway, Blake? I thought I told you..."

"Yeah. You told me I liked you even just a little, I'd leave you alone. Then I remembered. I don't even like you. At least I'm not supposed to, us being enemies and all?"

This time, I couldn't stop myself from grinning. "We're frenemies but whatever."

"Frenemies, schnemies. Doesn't matter. All that matters is I don't like you and I'm coming up there."

He then proceeded to climb, scaling the walls like a pro and just like that, he was in my room. Almost immediately, his eyes met mine with a concerned look etched in his face.

"I really am sorry for today," he said, his eyes down.

"It's okay, Blake. I kind of overreacted anyway," I brushed it off but Blake was determined.

"No you didn't. Your reaction was expected and I really am sorry for what I did. And I'm here to make it up to you, girl I don't like," he winked.

That was when I noticed the bag with him. As though reading my mind, he opened the bag and brought out two tubs of ice cream and his laptop.

"So what are these for?" I inquired, holding up the tubs of ice cream. He was already making my bed which I found amusing.

"Well to get your mind off, well everything, I thought we could watch a movie on my laptop while stuffing our face with ice cream? You know, Netflix and..." he instantly as he realised what he was about to say.

"Did you mean “Netflix and chill”?" I suggested, an amused smile on my face.

Blake seemed lost for words, his mouth curved in a ‘O’.

"Relax, Blake. I'm just kidding," I chuckled, playfully hitting his arm.

"Right! Right!" he said, jerking back to reality. After making the bed, we both slid under the covers, ice cream tub and spoon in hand. "So, what do you wanna watch?" Blake asked, turning to me.

"I don't know. What do you want to watch?"

"The Kissing Booth?" he suggested.

"Nuh-uh! Definitely no romance!" I shook my head.

"Okay then. How about horror?"

"Sounds good. Let's do it."

We decided on a horror movie, The Conjuring and waited for it to play. An involuntary shiver slid down my back and Blake felt it.

"You okay? Are you scared?" he asked, looking concerned.

"Maybe, just a bit," I admitted shyly.

"It's okay. I'm alright here for you," he reassured me, while sliding his arm around my shoulder and pulling me close. I smiled and moved ever closer to him, placing my head on his chest.

"Blake, you didn't choose horror so we could cuddle, did you?" I asked all of a sudden.

"Maybe I did. Maybe I didn't," he answered, smugly.

I simply shook my head at him and went back to watching the movie. The movie was pretty scared and I was frightened a whole lot of time but Blake was there to calm down. Eventually, I relaxed and felt my body melt again Blake's. Towards the end of the movie, I glanced up to find Blake studying at me intensely.

"See something you like?" I questioned, smirking.

His cheeks darkened and he seemed flushed, obviously embarrassed at being caught in the act. He recovered soon enough and said, "I was just thinking that this is nice. Just spending time with you. It's nice, really nice."

"It is, isn't it?" I smiled back at him. His lips grazed my forehead and I felt myself flush.

I went back to watching the movie just a truly horrific sight appeared on screen. I yelped and jumped, holding tight onto Blake and burying my face in his neck. I have no idea how long I stayed like that. The scare had passed but the warmth being this close to Blake gave me hadn't and I didn't want to let go.

"You okay, Ry?" Blake's baritone voice resounded, the rumble giving me goosebumps, the good ones though.

"Mm-hmm," I mumbled into his neck. I took a deep breath and pulled away, only slightly though. "I'm okay."

Looking into Blake's eyes made me realize just how close we were. In my fear and shock, I had jumped on Blake's body and was literally straddling him. My arms were wrapped around his neck and his hands were around my waist. Common sense and reason told me to apologise and get off him but I couldn't possible bring myself to do it.

"Should we...?" I trailed off, biting my bottom lip.

"Only if you want to," he answered, already quite aware of what I had in mind.

"I do want to. I want to really bad," I whispered. I closed my eyes for a second, took a deep breath and opened them again. Then with my arms still wrapped around Blake's neck, I drew close to him and just like that, we were kissing...