Caught by the Bad Boys Series

by Raathi Chota

  Miranda: Hey, woke up before you as always. lol You have some guests waiting for you…well by the time you read this, you’ll already know, so don’t worry about me and just enjoy the day.

  Chapter Three

  Lana

  Ten minutes later, we arrived. I got out and saw a small shopping center, a few small shops here and there, but the biggest one was:

  RODNEY’S ROCK & ROLL

  “Wow.” I looked at the big store in front of me; it consisted of two floors with band posters and guitars that surrounded the windows.

  “I know, right!” Carter grinned at me. He held his hand out, and I stared at it. “Come on then. I won’t bite.”

  I slowly took his hand as we walked into the store. Holding his hand was weird. Carter Halls was attractive, and I’d never pictured myself in the position I am right now, with him. The first floor was huge. It had records, CDs, guitars, comics, and books. I made out most of the bands as we walked past them. There was even a separate section for The Beatles. We went up the escalator for the second floor, where all the clothing was.

  “I’m in heaven,” I sighed as the corners of my mouth curved.

  “You got that right, babe,” Blake said, then swung his arm around my shoulder. I furrowed my eyebrows at him as my grip tightened on Carter’s hand.

  “I’m not your babe!” I scowled as I dropped Carter’s hand and shifted out of Blake’s hold.

  “Rodney!” Ethan said as a guy came out with a box in his hands. He looked to be in his late thirties, he had a few tattoos and dirty blond hair, and he also wore a band tee, jeans, and Converse.

  “What’s up, dude?” Rodney said as he greeted each of the boys. His gaze shifted toward me as I smiled. “Who’s the chick?”

  “This is Lana,” Aidan said. “We’ve been going out for a while.”

  “In your dreams, pretty boy.” I smiled sarcastically, then stepped aside.

  “Feisty, nice…I’m Rodney.”

  “Lana. Pleased to meet you. This is a cool store you got.”

  “Thanks…so what can I do for you guys?”

  “We want to turn our little geeky friend here into a badass chick,” Blake said as he draped his arm around my waist. I stiffened at his touch yet didn’t say anything because they’d continue to do it.

  “Cool, okay. Now what are some of your favorite bands?” Rodney asked as we walked to the women’s section.

  “Err…The 1975, Arctic Monkeys, Bring Me the Horizon, Green Day, My Chemical Romance, The Gaslight Anthem…I can go on for days.” I laughed at myself, then pushed up my glasses. I awkwardly coughed the laugh away and looked back at Rodney.

  “Girl has good music taste,” he said, then winked at Blake. “Okay…hmm…err…” Rodney said as he observed me; he walked around and took in every inch of my body. “Blake…come on,” he said, and Blake followed, probably going to get clothes for me to try on. Carter and Aidan disappeared to do their own shopping, which left Ethan and me.

  We stood near the dressing rooms for five minutes and looked anywhere and everywhere but at each other. Then I finally took the chance and asked him, “Why did you stop?” He looked at me in confusion, but after a moment, he finally understood.

  “I felt sorry for throwing the ball at your friend, and I knew you lived quite far so…” Ethan shrugged his shoulders.

  “Oh…thank you.”

  “No problem.” He smiled, but it looked forced.

  “Are you okay?”

  “What do you mean?”

  “I don’t know. You don’t really talk compared to the other guys.”

  “I don’t know, it’s weird. I used to tease you, and now I’m spending my Saturday with you. I don’t know how Carter and Aidan can be so calm when they used to tease you too, but now…” he said, then looked away. “Now when Blake shows up, he’s all…I don’t know, interested in you. It’s weird because I’ve known you since kindergarten, and I teased you for no reason. Now thanks to Blake, I see the real you. Shows don’t judge a book by its cover.”

  “Ethan, I don’t want you to feel so bad. It’s okay,” I said, then approached him.

  “I’m sorry.”

  “It’s okay,” I said, then raised my arms. His arms wrapped around me as he buried his head in my neck.

  “Get a room,” someone said. We let go, and I bit the inside of my cheek as Ethan rubbed the back of his neck.

  “Come on, nerd. Here, get changed,” Blake said as he shoved the clothes into my arms again and glared at Ethan. I walked into the dressing room and put on the first outfit. It was a maroon crop top, black tights with a few holes in them, and denim shorts. Rodney gave me some black Doc Martens, which looked like school shoes, but they were cute. I walked out of the dressing room; the guys were too engrossed in a story Rodney was telling to even notice I was there. I did an awkward cough, which caught their attention. Ethan and Aidan had smiles on their faces, and Rodney looked satisfied, but Carter and Blake didn’t.

  “I don’t like it,” Carter said as he shook his head.

  “Yeah, too revealing,” Blake said as I gaped at him, because I liked the outfit. “Try on the other outfits,” he said as he took out a cigarette. My eyes widened, but I walked into the dressing room and closed it to change.

  After seven outfits—Blake disagreed with most of them—I came out with the last outfit.

  “Is this satisfying for you, Blakey?” I asked with a fake pout. He raised his head from his phone, and I watched as his eyebrows rose. I wore The Killers tank top, black ripped jeans, and a leather jacket with Doc Martens.

  “You look…good,” he said, then stood up. I frowned because I noticed he didn’t really like it. He walked over to me and took my glasses off, then looked down at me. “Now you look hot,” he whispered as the corner of his mouth rose. I bit the inside of my cheek as I nodded. I got changed into my own clothes, then Rodney gave me a few other outfits like that one and said it’d look, and I quote, “hot” on me. Blake, Carter, and Aidan walked out of the store, which left Ethan and me at the cashier. I took out my wallet to pay, but Ethan stopped me.

  “I got it,” he said then took out his card.

  “T-Thanks.”

  “You look beautiful, Lana…with or without your glasses,” Ethan said with a smile. My cheeks reddened as he turned to the cashier to pay.

  Afterward, we drove and had a late lunch at a restaurant. We sat in a booth, and Blake casually sat next to me, Carter to my left, Ethan in front of him, and Aidan in front of me.

  “Err…four burgers and some salad?” Aidan told the waiter as he looked at me.

  “Excuse me?” I tilted my head at him. “Make that four burgers and a double,” I said. The waiter wrote down our order then walked away. “You think you guys can have delicious burgers while I eat some plants?” I scoffed. Blake smirked at me, but I ignored him and looked around at the customers. I did like salads, but I was famished, and I heard the place served good burgers.

  “You’re some girl, huh, Willson.” Carter laughed as I bit the inside of my cheek. It was a habit.

  “Do I really have to do all that bad girl stuff? I mean I have the clothing…”

  “And the attitude,” Blake chimed in.

  “What do you mean?” I raised a brow.

  “Just the way you act—it’s strange—like you’re not afraid, but you are afraid of something,” he said as his lips drew into a straight line. Before I argued, he continued. “You’ll be okay on Monday. Don’t worry. Be yourself and stop trying to hide behind that good girl image,” Blake said, then reached up and stroked my cheek. I realized everyone else had their own conversations while Blake looked directly at me.

  “But I’ve been doing it for years,” I said, then looked down.

  “Yeah…but I’ve finally caught you, and you’re no good girl,” he whispered with a smirk plastered on his face.

  ***

  I slipped on my black hoodie and Doc Martens, then tied my hair into a bun. Today’s the da
y. For the next two weeks, I had to become the school’s bad girl. Anything could happen in two weeks, and it’s scary. I walked downstairs with my bag and entered the kitchen. Mom was busy with the dishes as Dad looked up at me. Yikes. “Morning, everyone.”

  “Phases.” Father sighed and looked at his iPad again. I laughed and took it as a joke, but he raised a brow at me.

  “You okay there? You look different.” Mom tilted her head.

  “The weather looks weird today, so I put this on.”

  “Nice shoes…I don’t remember buying them for you,” Dad said as he glanced down at my long boots.

  “Yeah, she went—” Mom said, but something cut her off. A car honk. My eyes widened. I knew that car anywhere; it used to honk at me when I crossed the street to school and almost drove me over once.

  “Love you guys. Bye,” I said, then kissed Dad on the cheek. I raced out of the house to see Ethan and Aidan in the car.

  “Come on, we’re gonna be late, Willson!” Aidan yelled from the backseat. I turned around to see my parents by the door. Mom said something to Dad, and he nodded then walked back inside.

  “I was going to take the bus, you know,” I said as I climbed in the passenger seat.

  “Yeah, well, Blake said we should get you from now on,” Aidan said from the backseat. Before I questioned them any further, Ethan turned on the radio. We got to school and saw Blake and Carter by the doors. Blake looked at me and frowned. After our brief encounter at the restaurant, I kept my distance with him, because he knew me as nothing but bad. Which I found weird, Blake of all people. I’d never spoken to him since he came to the school, and suddenly, he’s interested in me. Blake noticed something in me that some of the Jefferson High students didn’t, and I’d been going to school with some of them since I was seven.

  “What?” I asked as we approached them.

  “Where’s your leather jacket? The makeup?” Blake asked, then eyed me up and down.

  “It was cold today, and I don’t like wearing so much makeup on a Monday!”

  “Blake, leave her. She looks gorgeous.” Carter winked at me. “Come on, let’s go in.”

  “Wait…do you mean all together? Like that ‘cool’ walk you guys do?” I raised a brow. I hated that walk. It’s lame and squirmy, and from the look on Blake’s face, I noticed he hated it too.

  “Yeah…now you will also look cool,” Aidan said, then swung his arm around me.

  “Err…no thanks. That walk you guys do is super lame.”

  “Come on, please. It will be so cool to have a girl in the middle,” Aidan whined as he tugged on my arm.

  “It’s like you’re our princess and we’re your knights protecting you.” Blake winked at me. A shiver kicked up my spine at the mention of princess.

  “I don’t need protecting.”

  “Watch this,” Aidan said. He gave a knock, and it magically opened. Everyone gave way as we walked. A look of irritation appeared on my face as people stared. I used to make fun of them and roll my eyes as they walked, and now I walked with them. We passed jocks, and they whistled at me, which was weird since they stole my gym clothes a few weeks ago so I had to wear the school’s old, smelly uniform. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Benny stare. I turned away, which made it worse since I saw Parker Collins, one of Aidan’s friends, smirk at me. I bit the inside of my cheek, then walked off. I approached my locker and quickly put in my combination. I took my glasses out of my bag, then put them on. All the attention was too much; I hated it.

  “Hey, badass,” a familiar voice said. I smiled as I closed my locker and saw Miranda.

  “Please don’t leave me again with those idiots!”

  “Was it that bad?”

  “Yeah…I mean, I love the clothes, but it was weird.”

  “Well, you’ll just have to get used to it, Lana…two weeks!”

  “Come on, Lana,” Aidan said as he leaned against the locker next to me.

  “Where?”

  “Class…where else?” he rhetorically asked. I closed my locker and said goodbye to Miranda. I looked down at my Calculus book as I followed Aidan. I didn’t see where we went because the bell rang. I panicked.

  “Aidan…where are we going?” I asked as I looked up. We walked to another side of the school as he grabbed my arm. The hallways got emptier until it was us.

  “We’re ditching, duh,” he stated. My eyes widened as I let go of his arm.

  “We can’t. We have a pop quiz today!”

  “How do you know that?”

  “Well, perks of having Mr. Bronx as your uncle, and I heard this quiz is necessary.”

  “That’s exactly why we’re ditching,” he said as he caught up to me.

  “Well, I’m not!” I said as I picked up my pace.

  “You can’t even survive the first period!”

  “So then what’s the use of coming to school if we’re going to the ditch the first period?”

  “Touché,” he said as we walked to Mr. Bronx’s Calculus class.

  “We’re already late, you idiot!” I growled as he stopped to get some water from the fountain. I grabbed his back collar and dragged him to the classroom.

  “Well, damn, if you want me so bad, Lana, all you gotta do is ask. I’m sure Carter won’t mind,” Aidan said behind me. I rolled my eyes and took a sharp turn. I made sure he knocked against the lockers. He groaned, but I continued to walk. I couldn’t be late for Mr. Bronx; I had upset him already last week. I opened the door to the classroom and dropped Aidan before I got in. Everyone’s eyes shot up from their work as they looked at me.

  “Lana, Aidan—you’re late,” Mr. Bronx said flatly, then I looked at him. He had rings under his eyes, which meant he was grumpy.

  “Sorry, Mr. Bronx…we…we…”

  “Just…sit down, you two,” Mr. Bronx said as he rubbed his temples. I quickly sat down; since the only two seats available were in front, we had no choice. “Right, class, take out your homework,” Mr. Bronx said as he wrote on the board. I went through my binder and got the sheet out, then I remembered I didn’t do it. I was going to do it this weekend, but the guys took my Saturday up, and on Sunday we had a family day. I quickly threw my sheet in my binder, then remained calm, but inside I boiled. I was already late, and now I didn’t do my homework. “Switch with the person next to you,” Griffin Bronx said as he ran his hand through his hair. The guy next to me was Nick, one of Benny’s friends and a jock. He gave me his paper with a smirk.

  “Where’s your sheet?”

  “I didn’t do the homework,” I mumbled, but he heard me loud and clear. Nick had a shocked look on his face, but it immediately turned into a devilish grin.

  “You didn’t do the homework, Lana!” Nick shouted. I glared at him, and he smirked at me. I looked down in shame; GG or Geeky Lana didn’t do her homework. I saw a pair of shiny shoes appear in front of me; I looked up and saw the disappointed look on Mr. Bronx’s face.

  “Lana…you’ve been very disruptive this lesson.”

  “Yes, sir,” I muttered. I had to be a bad girl. It shouldn’t influence me; I should get used to it.

  “And you do realize I must give you a detention, right?” he asked, and everyone gasped. I turned around and rolled my eyes at them. I looked back at Mr. Bronx and bit my lip as I slowly nodded. The rest of the lesson I made sure I did all my work, but Nick made it hard since he teased me about my detention. Aidan gave me thumbs up and said I did great.

  The rest of my day was absolute crap. I was in a bad mood, so Phys Ed was horrible. The guys smirked at me because they enjoyed every moment of it. We did laps around the field when I saw Ethan next to me.

  “How’s your day?”

  “Screw you, Ethan.”

  “Hey…want to race? First one to Coach Harris wins?” Ethan asked with a grin. He’s tall as hell, not to mention muscular. Yet I was stressed about everything that happened today, so doing something fun excited me.

  “You’re on!” I exclaimed with a bi
g grin. We stopped and took a quick breath.

  “One…two…three.”

  “Go!” I yelled after the countdown. He bolted through everyone, but I jogged. Halfway through, he got tired, and I took it as my chance to run. I ran through the students, which included Blake and Kelly. Ethan’s eyes widened as I passed him, but I eventually heard his footsteps. I ran with all my strength and closed my eyes as I crossed the imaginary finish line.

  “Lana!” Ethan yelled. My eyes shot open as I tripped and fell into someone, and that someone was an angry someone. Next minute we’re on the ground, but it didn’t stop there. Ethan came in so fast that he landed on top of us.

  “WILLSON, GET OFF ME!” Coach Harris yelled.

  “I can’t, sir,” I mumbled as Ethan crushed me. He immediately got up and held a hand out for me. I grabbed it as Ethan pulled me up. I turned around to help Coach Harris, but he was furious.

  “Willson! Baxter!” Mr. Harris yelled. I groaned at the mention of my surname; it was the fourth time I’d heard it today.

  The bell rang, which signaled the end of the day. I groaned as I shut my locker and walked to the detention room. I took my time, though; I’d say I got lost because I’d never gotten a detention before. I texted my mom and told her I’d be late because I’d be in the library doing homework. Like I’d say to her I got a detention. She’d give me a lecture on how she didn’t raise me like that, then go on and say how she wasn’t like that at my age. I got to the room and looked at it. I gulped and quietly opened the door. An old teacher sat there with his legs propped up on the table.

  “Miss Willson, surprised to see you here. Sit down,” Mr. George said, and I gave a slight nod. I looked around the room and saw a few people. Until my eyes met theirs, Ethan, Carter, and Aidan sat and stared with proud looks. Yet someone caught my eye, and I tightened my fists as I watched Blake Gunner listen to whatever Kelly West blabbed on about. However, I don’t think he paid attention because he kept licking his lips seductively as he stared at her cleavage.