Every day can be a Saturday evening

Celebration especially when

Every day is just another good reason to keep on kickin' with you

What you got you got a lot of hot something

Ooh your lovin' is the luckiest one

What you do when you do what you do makes me glad I'm kickin' with you ~ Kickin' With You - Jason Mraz (IN looooove with him!)

The Reject - Chapter Twenty

I nervously rubbed my hands together as I walked into the library. I was gonna do it. Oh my gosh!

There was a bunch of students in there. Most were eating and reading. Some whispering. I smelled the air and tracked Jace looking at the titles of books on a shelf deep inside the library.. 'What's up, Allyn?' he asked me before I could say anything. He hadn't even looked up!

'Jace...' I drawled out, not knowing what to say.

'Yes...?' he drawled out too, teasing me. I narrowed my eyes at him 'I have a favour to ask you...'

'And what makes you think that I'll do it?' he asked me, making me scowl.

'You have to!' I said, a bit loud. The librarian shushed us, but she was ignored.

'You can't make me!'

'You have to do it!' She shushed us again.

'Oh, really? Why?'

'You just have to!'

'Stop saying that.' he rolled his eyes 'I don't have to do anything.'

'Alright, that's it! You both are coming with me.' with that, the middle-aged lady took me and Jace by our elbows and dragged us. 'Hey, what the-!' she shushed me and this time, she wasn't ignored.

*~*~*~**~*~*~*

'I don't believe this.' I grumbled and crossed my arms as I sulked into the chair in the reception waiting area. 'Yeah.' Jace, who like always was sitting with his back straight, but with his arms crossed as well. 'It's all you're fault.' he added.

I gaped at him 'How is it my fault?! You're the one who didn't even listen to what I was gonna say!' he shrugged 'Why should I?'

I glared at him. What did Ashley ever see in him?

'Alright, Miss Lyra, Mr. Artemis, follow me.' said some lady who looked like a teacher.

'Where're you taking us?' I asked her as I got up along with Jace.

She sighed, 'I am Mrs. Carlton, the drama teacher. I've heard that you are to be punished. This year, at the start of summer, there is going to be a Battle of Plays, where about five or six schools participate. It is going to last for a week, a play a day from each school. Our school was selected and we need more members to help make the props for the drama club. Only four students had signed up.' she sighed again 'And none of them really have good artistic talent.' she freaking sighed for the third time and I felt a major depressed vibe. I moved closer to Jace. He smirked at me and I scowled at him 'The play is going to take place in about a month and we haven't started any props at all. We desperately need help. Also, you have no say in this.' I just gaped at her. Is she for real? What- Today was May 10th and school ended on June 12th. The play would probably be around June 9th or 10th, right? It's not that far. 'This school has been known for it's amazing plays for 4 years and we want to make it 5 but most of the students in the drama club's prop crew are from the art club and this year they are too busy with the art gallery coming up so we have no help at all!'

'But I'm in the art club!'

'Honey, you have no say in this. You're being punished.' 'But all I did was speak loudly in the library!' 'Doesn't matter. The school's desperate for artistic talent. So you Miss Lyra, I have heard about your artistic talent. You would be a great help. And you, Mr. Artemis, your strategic views are mind blowing. My, I have no idea how you managed to- oh dear, what on earth is going on here?!' We had reached the drama room to find utter chaos. There were people dancing, some were singing out of tune, girls were gossiping, guys were messing around with the props and in two words, I can describe it as: Noisy and Chaotic.

Or is that three words?

As soon as Jace and I entered the room, right behind Mrs. Carlton, it was as if time stopped. Everyone stopped what they were doing and stared at me and Jace. Well, the boys stared at me, the girls in the other hand, had their eyes on Jace. Mrs. Carlton looked smug.

'Ahah, finally. Now you better keep that silence.' and just like that, the spell was broken. Everyone broke down in hushed whispers, no doubt about me and Jace. We both looked at each other, confused. Well, I was confused, Jace was annoyed.

'Now, Mr. Artemis, Miss Lyra, I want both of you to help the prop crew.' she grinned widely 'With you two, the drama club has 54 members! Oh my!' she still had on a Cheshire cat grin. I took two steps away from her and closer to Jace. He smirked at me and I scowled at him again 'What?! She creeps me out!' I whispered furiously and looked back at the club. How annoying.

I moved deeper into the room, behind Miss Carlton, who was now ordering a group of girls, Jace close behind me. A bit too close.

'Hey!' said a chirpy voice and I turned around 'Hey! I'm Lisa, and this is Jasper, we're the co-presidents of the club. Nice to meet you.' I smiled at them. They were extremely excited for some reason.

'Hey, I'm Allyn and this is Jace.' I looked at Jace, who didn't look annoyed anymore. Instead, he was smiling. 'Hello, it was nice meeting you, too. Come on, Allyn. We have to be with Mrs. Carlton.' with that, he grabbed my elbow and dragged me to where the dramatic drama teacher was currently reading a few lines. I turned back while walking to wave at Lisa, only to find her staring at Jace's back, a blush on her cheek. Great. Someone else has a crush as well.

As soon as we reached close to her (she was on the other side of the large room), she handed the script to a good looking girl. Jace cleared his throat and asked Mrs. C where the prop crew was. 'Oh, hello!' the girl who now had the script in her hand said and she moved close to Jace. A bit waaay close. She held out her hand 'I'm Hayden, the main actress for the play.' He smiled at her and shook her hand, but barely, as he removed it after just one shake. He looked at me when I asked 'Mrs. C, what play is it?' Hayden looked annoyed.

'Oh, dear. I apologize. How forgetful of me. The play is Legally Blonde. It's a musical!' she squealed, along with almost every single girl in the room, except me. I looked at Jace 'Kill me. Now, please.'

*~*~*~**~*~*~*

Mrs. Carlton made me and Jace stay back after school to watch the broadway musical. I guess it wasn't as bad as I'd though it'd be. Not bad at all, really. But I still wasn't in the mood to skip my art gallery to make props for some stupid school broadway contest. Mrs. C, Jace and I were sitting in a group, watching it on her laptop. I heard the door open and some people walk in but I was too interested in watching the final dance. It was probably the co-presidents anyway.

'I can't believe I'm doing this.' that voice made chills go down my spine. I froze. Then I started chanting in my head "It's not him. It's not him. Please, it's not him!"

'Noah! Come on! You lost the bet! You have to do this!'

'Alright! I'm doing it!' his annoyed voice faded before he came closer to us.

'Noah, dear! What brings you here?' Mrs. C chirped, happy to see him.

'Oh, um,' he cleared his throat 'Mrs. C,' HE CALLS HER MRS. C, TOO?! I hate him 'I'm just uh, here to sign up for the play.' He looked at his feet, embarrassed. His friend, Jaden, laughed and slapped his back.

'The play? Really?! Oh, my! Of course, of course! Here,' she removed a register from her bag along with a pen and immediately handed ot to Noah. 'Sign right here. Are you too joining, Jaden?'

'Me?' he laughed 'Uh, n-' Yes, Mrs. C. He is.' Noah cut in, elbowing Jaden in his ribs. Jaden muttered an 'Ow' and glared at Noah as he rubbed his chest.

She looked as happy as a goat. You know, the one that smiles... in that photo on the internet...? Whatever, she just was very happy. 'Ah, how amazing! This is going to be the best ever production! Two of the most handsome boys in the school are here!' she looked at Jace 'Mr. Artemis, would you like to join in?' Jace immediately turned his frown, upside down. In a pretty fake manner. 'Oh, no thank you, Mrs. Carlton. I'd rather be behind the scenes, working in the props. Which reminds me of the question, why aren't we renting any props?'

Mrs.C's smile turned upside down. Wow. I just hoped that she won't sigh again.

'Ah, Mr. Artemis, can I call you Jace?' he nodded at her 'Well, Jace, the Principal had forgotten to phone the props company, even though I frequently kept reminding him. It's all his fault, really, but we are suffering.' Could she get more dramatic? That voice she's using, it's making me feel depressed! I felt like runny out of the room. It must be because of Noah. As if I didn't have enough problems with Jace. 'So now, I have put the burden on you two to make good props. And I mean great props. You got that?' She gave us a stern look. Oh good. No pressure at all. We both nodded and she immediately grinned. Please, get me out of here. She's annoying and creepy.

'Ah, tomorrow, I will introduce everyone to the four of you.' she sighed happily and clapped her hands once, staring at the wall 'We'll be one happy family.'

'Okay, Mrs. C. Shall I leave...? I asked, hoping she'd say yes.

'Ah, sure, why not? Go on. I've held you hostage for long enough today. My apologies.' She smiled at me and I lightened up a bit. The redhead was unpredictable, but nice. 'Alright, then.' I took my bag from the floor next to the table 'See you, tomorrow!' and with that, I pretty much ran out. And then I stopped running. And I turned back. And I stared at Jace. He asked me with an annoyed expression "What?' I smiled sweetly at him, and said 'I have a favor to ask you.'

*~*~*~**~*~*~*

'I can't believe you did it!' Squealed Katie as Lily took her hands, and they both did some jumpy dance.

'Yes, and it only cost me my dignity.' I rolled my eyes. 'Why didn't one of you do it?'

They stopped jumping 'Well, because you seem to know him more than us, with you being so close to Ashley and all.' I pressed my lips together.

'Aloha, guys!' a chirpy voice entered my bedroom, where we all currently were. 'Ashley...?' I stared at the girl standing by my door. She looked different. Those vibes... of anger and arrogance, they were gone. 'Oh, my, gosh! Ashley!' this time I squealed, a first for me, and jumped off the bed and hugged her tightly. She was back. 'Woah!' the other two girls also came running at us and it was a group hug. The second best group hug I'd ever had. I didn't know how much I'd missed this little idiot. 'What's all this love for? she asked and we all laughed 'We missed you.' grinned Lily. 'Really? But I'd only gone to buy new shoes.' I hugged her tighter 'Don't break our bones now, Jessie.' I smiled, hearing my name from Ashley. I missed it. I missed it all so much. We heard Lily's and Katie's names from their mates, outside the house. 'Oh, no. Our dates!' Katie cried with horror, 'I hope we're not late for the movie!' Lily muttered as she ran out, before coming back in, kissing mine and Ashley's cheeks and running back out. 'See you later, girls.' Katie did the same and ran out.

I sighed and sat on the window seat, watching them greet Sammy and Troy with kisses and hugs. Ashley jumped and laid on my bed. 'Jessie... today was the best day ever.' I smiled at her and opened my mouth to ask why but she cut me off 'Why do you smell like Jace?' My stomach dropped 'Um, it's because we both... um, we had to... um, there's this drama club, and um we had to be punished so they made us join it and-' 'Wait, wait, wait! You both are in the drama club?' she asked, shocked. 'Uh, yeah, but we were completely forced, I mean, we had no say in it-' she suddenly squealed an I stared at her, open -mouthed 'Um, Ashley... is everything okay?'

'So- so Jace is in the drama club?' It was then it completely dawned on me that I was no longer in the Art club. I stared out the window and made a face. How depressing.

'Yes.' I said, still staring out the window with a bitter look. 'JESSIE!' she screamed, suddenly. Alright, I'm seriously getting annoyed at all the people being so unpredictible and all these different emotions. I contemplated jumping out the window. Will my bones even break with this height? 'I am in the drama club!' she laughed. I smiled at her, though it was fake. 'Hey, Ashley, I gotta take a shower. Talk to you later?' I got up, took my towel, and without a glance at her, locked myself in my bathroom. I was done for the day. Gah, I hate everybody. Well, except for Grey, Sammy, Troy, Katie and Lily. Even, Ashley, I guess.

I sang in the shower to calm myself down. Hey, just because I can't sing, doesn't mean I won't.

*~*~*~**~*~*~*

I smiled at everyone who greeted me, as I walked down the hallway, during lunch towards the Drama club. I honestly hated this. Why couldn't I just be alone. Once I finish graduating from a University, I'm going to get a high paying job, and then, I'm going to travel the world. Once I entered the class room, I noticed that there were more people than there were yesterday. And that they were all staring at me. My eyes searched for Mrs. C. Where was she? Someone cleared their throat behind me and I jumped. Jace was smirking down at me. Gosh, why was he so tall? I scowled at him. I was starting to realize that it was the way we usually greeted each other. He smirked and I scowled. 'Excuse me, but you're blocking the entrance.' he said, obviously making fun of me. There were a few giggles from the girls in the room who heard him. I turned red, which was freaking embrarrassing by the way, and immediately took a step back. He nodded at me and walked towards where Mrs. C was currently talking to some girls. I refused to look at him, but then I realized that I had to follow him if I wanted to reach Mrs. C. Ugh, I hate him, that annoying buffoon. Once Mrs. C noticed that we were there, she looked relieved. 'Ah, you both came today after all. I was afraid you would quit.' 'So, do you mean that we can quit?' I asked, hopeful. She frowned 'Absolutely not.' I heaved a depressed sigh.

Jace rubbed the annoyed look off his face and asked 'Where can we start, Mrs. C?' She pointed at some students lazing around on the floor 'They're the prop team and you have-' 'Mrs. Carly! There you are!' I was shocked. I turned around 'Ashley?' 'Oh, Allie! There you are! What are you doing in the famous Drama club?' I made a face in my head. What was she doing? And why was she tallking like that? Mrs. C rubbed her temples as if she was having a headache 'Ah, Mrs. Thea, I see you've finally decided to attend the Drama class.' Ashley grinned proudly as if it was a great accomplishment. 'And it's Mrs. Carlton.' she corrected Ashley, but Ashley was a bit busy, staring and Jace and all. I rolled my eyes 'You were saying, Mrs. C?' she smiled at me slightly 'Yes, dear, you have to make the small props first. I've talked with the company that provides us with props and, good for all of us, they can have the big houses and the jail backgrounds delivered to us before the competition. Now, the only thing left are the props of the classroom, the bedroom, the department store and- oh, I'll just make a list for you.' she grinned at me and went back to talking to the girls.

Great. I looked at the ceiling, and shook my fist at it. Someone coughed and I turned around. Jace was talking to Ashley and her back was to me. I smirked at him and gave him a thumbs up. I was only making fun of him, of course.

'Alright, everyone!' Mrs. C clapped her hands to get everyone's attention. 'I want to introduce our new additions to all of you.' What? Introduction? Now? I thought we had to start the work on the props.

Mr.C started with me, and the boys in the room started whispering. I didn't check what they were saying about me, though. What's it called? Freedom of speech? Some girls were glaring, though and others were smiling. I smiled back at them, and grinned at the ones who were glaring.

Next was Jace. I wish I could tell you the reactions of the girls, but honestly, I was a bit too engrossed in looking at all the painting equipment lying on the floor. What the heck? There were no good brands. If we wanted good props, we need good products. I looked up when I heard my name 'Allyn and Jace are only here to help us with props because of being punished. Be nice to them, kids.' The boys and girls smirked when they heard the word punished. I'm not an expert or anything, but I think they found it appealing that we were punished, in the "Bad Boy/Girl" way. Does that change my reputation? I didn't know.

But I knew one thing. The girls were extremely happy by the fact that Jace, Noah and Jaden had joined the drama club. Mrs. C came towards me. She looked excited 'You know, Allyn, I am definitely expecting more boys and girls to join this club!' I gave her a confused look 'Why, Mrs. C?' She smiled gently at me. 'Ah, how sweet you are, my dear. It is because of you and the other three boys. You four seem to be looked up by the other students in the school.' Me? Waaaait a minute. I was popular? I looked at Jace. He was talking to a group of girls. Well, the girls were talking to him, he was just pretending to be interested. I looked at Noah. He was just the same as Jace, hardly participating in conversation with the group of girls surrounding him. Then my eyes found Jaden, trapped between girls too. But he was definitely interested in communication. Mrs. C laughed all of a sudden and I looked at her. 'I guess I'll leave you to your fans.' she looked behind me, making me turn my head. A group of boys were standing, obviously waiting for Mrs. Carlton to leave me alone. She chuckled 'Don't let the wolves eat you, dear.' With that she walked away. I giggled nervously. Talk about irony.