Cast Picture on the Side!

Chapter 3

"Damn right I'm jealous!" He complained. I felt my eyebrows go up. "I wanted to be Josh's partner. Now, I actually have to do work."

I rolled my eyes. "We all know you have a man crush on him. I just met you, and even I picked that up."

"Man crush? What? No!" Tate's eyes looked panicked. Holy moley! What if he's gay?!

"Tate?" I asked carefully.

"What?"

"Are you gay? CauseIfYouAreIWontJudge!" I rushed the ending out. Josh and Connor bursted out laughing.

"Bitch, I'm not gay!" Doth thou protest too much?

"Sensitive topic, huh?" I muttered.

"It's because in our old school Jackson started a rumor that Connor and Tate were secret lovers as a prank. Connor laughed about it, banged a few chicks, and moved on. Let's just say Tate can hold a grudge." Josh explained.

"Shut up." Tate grumbled and turned away from his friends and stared at his lunch.

I looked at Marie, and we both shrugged.

"So, Jacky, how did you come across the guys? What's the story here?" I asked my childhood friend.

He scratched the back of his neck. "Um, I just saw them and became friends." What? That doesn't even make sense. There has to be a story on how scrawny Jacky became friends with buffer guys. Maybe they were all scrawny and they worked out together. Either way, there has to be a story.

"Okay." If he didn't want to tell me, then whatever.

Marie noticed that I was a little annoyed at his brush off, so she quickly changed the subject. "Why'd you move back here? How come you brought your friends?"

Jackson didn't say anything. Connor quickly spoke up. "We came with him because we are like brothers. Would you move without your family?"

This was just weird.

"We were only a couple towns over. Some of us had unfavorable situations at home, so we put our money together and got a house. The only one that we could afford and was able to accommodate four guys was here. It was worth switching schools." Josh answered her. At least someone is not avoiding questions.

"What happened to your parents?" I asked Jackson.

Tate banged his fist on the table. "Stop asking questions. None of it either of your businesses." He glared at both of us.

Marie looked down guiltily, but I was just pissed.

"God forbid that I want to know what happened to my freshman best friend after he suddenly left one day." I matched his glared with a harsher one of my own.

Jackson ran a hand through his short black hair. "I said sorry for that."

I rolled my eyes. "Well Jacky, maybe that is not enough." I stood up and walked out of the cafeteria. I have a little bit of an abandonment issue. My father left my family just days before Jackson left. I was a complete mess.

I used to be dependent on everyone around me. I would let my friends defend me while I stood behind them. After having the two men in my life leave around the same time, I felt broken. Marie helped me get through it, but I was never the same. I speak for myself now. I depend on no one because the minute you do, they will leave you.

Marie ran after me, but I ducked into a janitor's closet to lose her.

I am so happy that Jackson is back, but it is hard to just forgive him for leaving. He moved away with his parents, but he didn't want to stay in contact with me. He didn't care enough about our friendship to even call once in a while.

Plus, when he finally did come back, he brought Wall-e with him. Josh and Connor seem okay. I can accept them, but there is something about that arrogant jerk, Tate, that makes him unlikable.

I will forgive Jackson, but it will take time. The way that Marie is just acting like he never left infuriates me. How can she pretend that he never left us without even a goodbye? She is too mesmerized by his good looks to look at the big picture.

A knock on the door snapped me out of my thoughts.

"Luna, I know you are in there." Josh's voice sang softly through the door.

I sighed and opened the door. "How did you know?" I narrowed my eyes at him.

He shrugged sheepishly. "I've been knocking on all of the doors saying that."

I let out a small laugh.

"Jackson is looking for you." He stated the obvious.

"I know. I don't want to talk to him right now."

He gently pushed me back into the janitor's closet and shut the door behind him. He reached up and turned on the single light bulb that hung from the ceiling. "Fine. Let's talk about our project then." He sat on the concrete floor.

I looked at him disbelievingly, but sat across from him nevertheless. I pulled a notebook out of my messenger bag.

"What are we going to do our project on?" He asked me.

"Nothing boring."

"Damn, I was hoping to do our senior project on the history of yarn." He said sarcastically.

"Cut the sass." I pushed him, jokingly.

He rolled his eyes, but smiled. "What about human emotions? What makes people hate each other? Love each other?"

I thought for a minute. "I don't even believe in love. I can't do a project on something that I believe isn't even real. How about what makes people kill? Like serial killers and stuff."

"That is so Criminal Minds." Josh chuckled.

"I love Criminal Minds. Even you have to admit that it is an interesting show."

"Okay." He nodded. "We'll do our project on serial killers."

"Yay." I gave Josh a high-five.

Josh stood up and held a hand out to me. I let him pull me up and we left the janitor's closet. The hallway was deserted except for one person. Wall-e.

"Next time you guys run off to a janitor's closet, tell Jackson so that he doesn't freak out looking for you." Tate turned and walked away.

"You know what he thinks, right?" Josh smirked at me.

"I honestly couldn't give a damn what he thinks." I shrugged my shoulders and started walking in the direction of my next class.