The Boyfriend Deal(8)

Not that there was anything wrong with my self-worth. But I didn't fool  myself by thinking the hottest boy in school could possibly have had his  eye on me like he'd insinuated yesterday at the ice cream parlor.

As we ate, his phone started going nuts, but he ignored it and kept talking to me.

"Don't you need to get that?" I asked.

"I'm sure it's just Robert or Colin, maybe both. They can wait until we get to school. I'm sure it's nothing."

"Maybe you should look, just to be sure?"

Tyler smiled. "I'm not checking my phone while I have the most beautiful  girl in school sitting across from me. They can wait. My time with you  is limited, and I'm going to savor the moment."

I didn't believe a word he'd just said, but it definitely won him some  points. If this was the real thing, he'd be the perfect boyfriend. Which  made me wonder why he'd only ever dated Alicia.

"How come you've never dated anyone seriously but Alicia?" I asked.

"Alicia was more of a habit than a girlfriend. She had her uses, but I  never intended to be with her long-term. As for the other girls, they  knew I was only in it for a day or two. I never made it a secret that I  was only looking for a good time."

"And now?" I couldn't help but ask, but I was almost afraid of his answer.         

     



 

"Things are different now. I've got Mom breathing down my neck to change  my ways or else face military school for the rest of my senior year,  and honestly  …  when I look to the near future, I don't see myself going  off to college and keeping Alicia as a girlfriend, or keep hopping from  girl to girl. I want something more."

"You mean like a real relationship?"

He nodded. "It's time for me to get serious about life, and that means I need a serious girlfriend."

Was it too much to hope that I could be that serious girlfriend? Or  would he choose someone else once his Mom was satisfied that he'd  changed? He'd told me from the beginning that this was a temporary  arrangement, and I would be foolish to think that would change. Boys  like Tyler didn't go for girls like me, even if those looks he gave me  were enough to make my knees weak, and the kisses he seemed to give  freely made me melt.

Tyler paid for our food when we were finished, and we arrived at school  about fifteen minutes before the bell would ring. As I opened my locker,  something oozed out of it and plopped onto the floor. The scent of  strawberry-banana yogurt hit me at the same time I realized that  everything in my locker was coated in the stuff. It seemed Alicia had  struck. It hadn't taken her long, and I'd been expecting something, but  not anything quite this messy.

"Looks like I'm going to be late for class while I clean this up. No way  I can use my books. Think they'll let me swap them out without having  to pay for the damages?"

Tyler's friend, Robert, came skidding to a halt beside us. "I tried to  reach you all morning to warn you. I had to come in early to talk to  coach and I caught her squirting tubes of the stuff through the locker  vents."

"Alicia?" Tyler asked.

"I saw her do it, and I have no problem telling the principal what  happened." Robert looked at me. "I'm sorry I couldn't stop her before  she'd done so much damage."

"It's okay." I nibbled on my lower lip. "I'm just not sure how to go about cleaning it up."

"You're not going to," Tyler said. "Robert, go get the principal and  tell him we have an issue that needs to be addressed. He needs to see  the evidence himself."

Robert ran down the hall in the direction of the office, and I sighed as  I studied the mess that had once been an orderly locker. She'd even  gotten my notebooks from every class, except the few I had in my bag. I  wouldn't be able to take notes in most of my classes today.

When the principal arrived, it seemed Robert had already filled him in.

"Hadley, I'm going to see that Alicia cleans this up, and I'll have the  custodian keep an eye on her so nothing else gets messed up. Once she's  cleaned the yogurt off everything, I'll see that your books are  returned. Take this slip to your classes and see that you get new  books," Mr. Richards said as he handed me a pink slip.

"Thank you. I'll have to get some new notebooks before I can take notes  in these classes. I only had English and History at home with me last  night."

"Bring in your receipt and I'll see that Alicia reimburses you." Mr.  Richard patted my shoulder. "You'd better get to class so you aren't  late. Don't worry about this mess a moment longer."

Tyler took my hand and led me off in the direction of my first period  class, and he met me at the door when class was over. It was a pattern I  was starting to get used to as he did the same thing after every class.  We even ate lunch together, at a table with my friends. Robert joined  us, but it seemed Tyler's other friends were shunning him. I hoped this  scheme of his was worth losing his friends over.

At the end of the day, my locker was completely cleaned out and smelled  like lemon cleanser. I put my new books inside, even though I felt  uneasy about it. What if Alicia pulled another prank and my new books  suffered for it?

"I had every intention of giving you some space," Tyler said. "But do  you think your mom would mind if I stayed at your house and worked on  homework for a little while? Assuming you have any that is."

"Did you really just ask if you could do homework with me?"

He nodded.

"I don't guess Mom will have an issue with it. Hunter never wanted to do homework with me."

"I thought we already decided that Hunter was an idiot."

I smiled as we walked out to his truck, then froze in horror. "I think Alicia is pissed at you too."

His gaze swerved to his truck, and the very flat tire with a knife  sticking out of it. Except, on closer inspection, I knew it hadn't been  Alicia who had done this. I knew that knife. Hunter had kept it in his  glove compartment for as long as we'd dated.         

     



 

"Hunter," I hissed.

Tyler looked down at me. "Hunter did this?"

"I recognize the knife. It seems he's transferred his attention to you  now that it's gotten around school that we're dating. I'm really sorry,  Tyler."

"No worries. I have a spare tire, but it's going to take me a few  minutes to change it. Are you okay waiting with me or do you want to  catch a ride with someone else?"

"I can wait."

It was the least I could do. After all, my psycho ex was the one who'd  vandalized his truck. I shouldn't have been surprised by the move.  Hunter was unstable when it came to me, which I didn't understand. He'd  cheated on me repeatedly, if the rumors were to be believed, so why did  he want me back so badly? It couldn't be because he had feelings for me.  Was it a control thing? I'd been weak and he'd been able to push me  around; maybe he wasn't ready to give that up?

I watched as Tyler changed the tire on his truck, his muscles bulging. I  didn't like the fact that Hunter had done this, but I had to admit that  I was entertained for the moment. What girl wouldn't like seeing Tyler  like this? Was this why the cheerleaders hung out around football  practice to watch the guys do push-ups and sit-ups? I had to admit, I  saw the attraction in doing something like that, if the boy I was  watching was Tyler.

When he was finished, he grimaced at his dirty hands. "I'd help you into the truck, but I don't want to mess up your outfit."

"It's okay. I'm really sorry about Hunter. You should tell Principal  Richards. It's only fair that my ex gets into trouble for trashing your  truck when yours got in trouble for trashing my locker."

"I just want to get you home."

"Please, Tyler? He shouldn't be allowed to get away with this."

Tyler sighed, but agreed. It took another twenty minutes to discuss the  issue with Principal Richards, who wanted to take pictures of the tire  with the knife in it and call the police. It took a while for officers  to arrive but once they'd taken our statement and some pictures of their  own, and I'd told the principal that I knew it was Hunter's knife  because I'd seen it in his car, we were finally free to go. I knew Mom  was probably worrying because we were about an hour late, and I hadn't  thought to call or text.

"What do you think will happen to Hunter?" I asked.

"Since we involved the police, he may do some jail time. Is he still seventeen?"

I shook my head. "He turned eighteen last month."

"Then he may be tried as an adult. I don't think he's going to college in the fall, or graduating high school."

I felt bad for Hunter, but he'd brought this on himself.

Tyler got us to my house without incident and I apologized to Mom when she opened the door.

"I'm really sorry, Mom, but we had some problems at school today.  Tyler's ex-girlfriend squirted yogurt all over the inside of my locker,  then Hunter decided to put a knife through one of Tyler's tires. It took  a while to change it and talk to the principal and then the police were  called."