I Slapped Mr. Popular

21

Monday comes too fast. I find myself literally dragging myself out of bed. I don't want to go mostly because I would have to face Jared. The shock of seeing him at the party has disappeared, and it's replace with an emotion I can't put my finger on.

I get dressed, pushing away the thoughts of him. I shouldn't be thinking of him anyway. He is a thing of the past. He doesn't deserve to be thought about.

After I finish the rest of my daily routine, I grab my backpack and phone. The doorbell rings as soon as I reach the bottom, and I answer it, smiling as I see Ridge. "Morning," I say, stepping out and shutting the door behind me.

"Good morning, baby girl," he says, leaning down and kissing me. He grabs my hand when he pulls away, and we make our way to his car.

Ridge opens the door for me, and I get in. "Thank you."

"Anytime," Ridge says, shutting the door. When he gets in, he looks at me. "I have a question."

"What?"

"Are you nervous?" he asks, turning the car on.

I shrug. "I don't really know," I say, buckling up.

He buckles up as well then pulls out of my driveway. "I'll be with you, so don't be nervous," he replies.

"Okay," I say, shooting him a smile.

Ridge winks, and the rest of the car ride is silent. When Ridge pulls into a parking spot, I see Emma, Marcus, and Xavier walking over to his car. I get out, and Xavier and I look at each other. I smile, and he just looks away. I feel a little stab, and I look at Emma. She raises her eyebrows as a silent question.

I bite my lip, and she nods. "I'm gonna steal your girlfriend for a moment," she says to Ridge and hooks her arm through mine. We walk until we're out if earshot, and she drops my arm. "What's going on with you and Xavier?"

"I think he likes me," I say, and she mutters something under her breath. "What?"

"You're just now realizing it!" she exclaims, throwing her arms in the air, "Well, finally!"

"Keep your voice down!" I hiss.

Emma covers her mouth. "Sorry," she says as she drops her hand, "but how did you not notice it before?"

I shrug. "I don't know. I just didn't."

"What happened?"

"Well, after the whole Jared incident, Xavier took me home, and I asked him to stay over-"

"Oh my God, you didn't!"

I furrow my eyebrows for a second before furiously shaking my head. "No!"

She lets out a relieved sigh. "You scared me."

"How could you think that? Anyway, Ridge came over yesterday and saw Xavier, and the whole realization kicked in when they were talking, arguing," I say.

"You are so blind," Emma comments, drawing out "so."

I nod. "Yeah, I know that now."

"How do you feel about it?"

I shrug. "I don't know."

"Well, don't let him know that you know. He'll tell you sooner or later," she says.

I raise my eyebrows. "Why not?"

She just shakes her head. "Just don't."

"Okay, I won't."

"You girls ready?"Marcus asks. Ridge comes up beside me and intertwines our fingers.

Emma smiles and nods, and we all four walk into the school. Surprisingly, there isn't that many stares. A few whispers, yeah, but not as many stares as I thought. I let out a breath that I didn't know I was holding and relax.

Ridge gives my hand a squeeze, and I shoot him a smile.

Today may actually be a good day.
××××××
I make my way to my locker after fourth period, and I see Wren standing beside my locker. I pretend to ignore as I unlock and open my locker. "Hey, Braelyn," she greets.

"Wren," I say, nodding.

"So, I'm guessing you heard about Jared being back. Isn't it great?!" she exclaims.

I decide to play along. "Yeah, it is!" I exclaim.

Wren narrows her eyes, but the sickly sweet smile doesn't leave her face. I raise my eyebrows, and her smile turns into a smirk. "We're back together, you know," she says.

I shrug. "So? You deserve each other," I say, "You're both fake."

She gasps, and an arm wraps around my waist. "Is there a problem?" Ridge asks.

I look at him. "Nope. Wren was just leaving," I say, looking back at Wren.

She glares at me then walks away. Ridge kisses my head. "What should we do for our free period today?" he asks.

I shrug. "It doesn't matter. I don't have any homework, so anything works for me."

"Well, I was thinking that we could go to the football stadium," he begins.

I raise my eyebrows. "Football stadium?"

"Yeah, follow me," he says, grabbing my hand. We make our way out of the school and take a left. The football stadium is right below the hill behind the school. We walk through the home "tunnel" as everyone called it.

When we come out, Ridge takes in a deep breath. "I used to love it here," he says, "You know, when it was empty. Helps me think."

I stay quiet because he has this look in his eyes that is a mix of sadness and thoughtfulness. "When my parents put me up for adoption, I wasn't really surprised. I was hurt mostly, but I wasn't surprised. When I was finally adopted, I discovered this. I used to sneak under the loose fence over there," he points out the part over next to the visitor stands, "at night when I would get really sad. Coming here made me forget everything, and I finally felt at home."

"Why are you telling and showing me this?" I ask quietly.

Ridge looks at me and puts on a ghost of a smile. "Because I know you're going through things with your mom. It was on my mind last period. I hope this place can be your comfort zone as it is mine."

"Thank you," I say.

"No, thank you. For once in my life, I actually feel like I belong."

"It's only been a couple of days," I remind him.

He pulls me to him. "It only takes a day to change someone's life," he says, and we fall into silence.

Looking at the football field with Ridge close, I realize that Ridge is right. It only takes a day to change someone's life.