The Boyfriend Bet (7 page)

“Take it off,” Mrs Davenport was now whispering, which
was freaking me out more than if she had of shouted. She was just way too calm
for my liking. I stared down at her navy blue shoes (yuk)...What was I going to
do?

“Charley, I’ll ask you one more time and then I’ll just
exclude you from school.”

“Ok, I’ll be excluded,” I said quietly. This obviously
was not the right answer.

“TAKE THEM OFF NOW!” Her screech cut through the silence
and I wasn’t the only one that jumped.

I wished I could have been a hundred times braver than I
was, but I wasn’t. I guess I was going to have to admit defeat. I wondered
where Sam was sitting. At least Riley wasn’t here as he’s in Year Thirteen, but
that was the only good thing about the situation. Eurgh, I felt sick! I
couldn’t help myself and I stupidly had a quick look into the crowd of very
shocked looking pupils. I didn’t see Sam but my eyes stopped when I saw Jay
smirking at me. He looked highly amused. I was never ever going to live this
down.

“Now,” Mrs Davenport prompted me. I shakily took the
sunglasses off with one hand and the hat with the other, resulting in the much
expected giggling and wolf whistles. “On second thoughts put them back on!” The
witch instructed me, she looked absolutely horrified at my appearance.

I’m not sure if this topped the awful Ella and Sam
assembly shocker but I just wanted to disappear. “Go and sit down.” She pushed
the note back into my hands, looking seriously pissed off that her whole
assembly had been disrupted. “Oh and Charley?”

“Yeah?” I muttered, already walking away.

“You’re still excluded.” Mrs Davenport smiled.

That bitch really did exclude me as well. Well, if Mum
thought she was going to get all high and mighty with me for getting excluded,
she could think again. And I had dance class after school with my own class, as
well as helping out with the two younger classes before. Stella also gave me a
funny look when I took the sunglasses off. She thought I’d been in a fight but
when she heard about Peter and his flying shoe, she also thought it was
hilarious.

Zoe Ryan was the only one to keep making bitchy remarks
and jibes throughout our whole dance session. “Stella, she needs to be at the
back, nobody wants to look at that!” She’d stopped the whole routine and
pointed at me, just as it was my turn at the front. Everyone had laughed but
Stella kindly pointed out that it would be a long time yet before we performed
in front of anyone and even longer if we didn’t get on with practising and stop
worrying about who was standing where.

It’s always like this, regardless of whether I have a
black eye and orange hair or not. Zoe just wants to be at the front the whole
time. Whenever we have rehearsals for performances, Zoe kicks up a real fuss
about where everyone stands until they get so bored with it and they basically
just give in and let her hog the limelight at the front. This is usually fine
by me - I’m happy at the back - let the exhibitionists get all the attention!

I nearly started a screaming match with Mum when I got
home. “How stupid can you be to sign the note ‘Charley’s mum?” I yelled at her,
after she’d demanded to know how I had got myself excluded.

“Well, you lot drive me crazy. I obviously wasn’t
thinking straight!” Mum offered this lame excuse as an explanation. She didn’t
even tell me off for calling her stupid. I should have realised that something
was going on there and then. “Do you want me to write you another note or ring
up and explain?”

“No, you’ve done enough,” I huffed. I figured I would
rather be excluded from school for the rest of the week. Mrs Davenport has
probably actually done me a favour. I still had to go to school. It was what
Mrs Davenport liked to call ‘internally excluded’ which meant I still had to go
in, but I had to spend the week in the isolation room with various bits of work
that were given to me to get on with.

Isolation room - what a joke, it’s not isolation at all!
One teacher usually sits at the desk at the front of the room. Normally if they
have a free period, they’ve been forced to give up an hour watching over the
isolation room. They all look not so thrilled to be there. Occasionally another
pupil who has just been chucked out of their class turns up for the rest of
that lesson. Of course anyone else who might be internally excluded is there
too, so whoever came up with the idea of calling it ‘The isolation room’ was pretty
dumb if you ask me.

“Ok, I’m now going out Charley, look after Peter for me.”
Mum just announced this as I noticed that she was all made up (well for her
anyway).

“What! It’s a bit late isn’t it?” I couldn’t believe
this, why have I always got to be the babysitter?

“Well, I had to wait for you to come back from dancing,”
Mum smiled. Great, she’d planned it all along and didn’t even have the decency
to mention it to me until it was too late for me to make any plans. Crafty or
what?

“Where’s Ella?” I huffed, folding my arms.

“She’s out.” Mum smiled at me again. On a Monday night? I
wondered where she could be. Maybe she had offered to show Riley around
somewhere again and I was stuck at home babysitting Peter.

“Great, so I get punished for my lack of a social life
because I look like a freak and can’t go out.” I was having a mini rant to
myself now but out loud. “Am I going to get paid?”

“Yeah, of course,” Mum said, as she grabbed her jacket.

“Really?” This possibly wasn’t as bad now. I wasn’t going
out anywhere anyway.

“Yeah, I’m paying for your hair on Thursday. I’d say that
was more than enough.” Mum chuckled to herself in that annoying way parents do
when they think they know everything and we know absolutely nothing and then
she shut the door behind her as she left.

“Mum! Muuuummmm!” Peter was already calling down the
stairs. I could tell this evening was going to be fun. Once Peter had had three
glasses of squash (honestly, he kept saying he was thirsty), I turned on the
T.V in his room and put a DVD on and he finally stopped calling me. Mum usually
has a no T.V at bedtime policy for Peter – apparently it makes him grumpy and
difficult in the morning - but she isn’t here, is she? If she’s going to land
me with looking after snotty little Peter, then I’m going to give him anything
he wants to shut him up.

At last I could finally put my feet up and watch T.V. I
was pigging out big time but I could enjoy it as I didn’t have to fight for the
remote or have to listen to Mum telling me I’d really eaten enough. And just
like that I was plunged into darkness. I absolutely hate the dark! I just froze
and waited for the screaming to start from Peter’s room. There wasn’t
any...what a relief. It could only mean Peter was finally asleep, thank god. I
presumed we’d had a power cut but there is something totally unnerving about
the dark. I swear I could hear my heart beating in the silence. It was
completely typical that this would happen when I was left alone babysitting
Peter.

I took a deep breath and used my phone to light the way
as I walked to the kitchen steadily but carefully. I knew Mum kept candles in
here somewhere. I found a bag of tea lights in a drawer. Mum does like her
candles but she can only really have them out when Peter’s not around, like at
his dad’s or something. Typical bloody Mum though, there were not any matches
or a lighter anywhere in sight. Admittedly my phone was not a great torch but
you would think the logical thing would be to keep the matches with the
candles.

Great, I would just have to wait until Mum got back, but
that could be ages. She didn’t even say where she was going. I could go next
door and ask. Simon did come round here on the scrounge this morning, so he
obviously thought we were on ‘borrowing’ terms with each other. I desperately
tried to think of another solution but the fact was I was shit scared and just
wanted some light.

 I knew I had to be quick if I was going to go round
and ask because Peter was upstairs and could potentially wake and freak out at
anytime. I could leave the front door open though, so I could hear if he was to
call out. What if Riley answered the front door, what would I say to him? I
felt even more nervous now, but I didn’t want to sit here in the dark all night
either.

Feeling very brave and maybe just a little bit of
excitement mixed with dread that I could see Riley, I opened the front
door....and screamed! I wasn’t expecting someone to be standing there. I could
only make out an outline as the street lights were all out too and it was very
dark.

“Hey, it’s me, Riley.”  I heard his voice. I
wondered if I’d scared him as much as he had frightened me.  “I just came
round to check that you were ok?”

Oh my god! I think my heart did five somersaults or
something. Did he just say he had come round to see if I was ok?

“Um, yeah I’m fine. The dark’s not that scary, is it?” I
lied.

“Um no....of course not.” Riley replied but he didn’t
sound all that sure himself.

“I was just coming to ask you, don’t suppose you have a
light?”

“A light?” Riley repeated.

“Yeah anything, matches or a lighter? I have some candles
and nothing to light them with.”

“Oh, hang on a minute. I’ll be right back.”

I stood on the doorstep wishing he would hurry up. Well, clearly
Ella was not out with Riley tonight, so that was something. After waiting for
what seemed like forever, Riley was back and he actually followed me back into
the house! He gave me some matches and I lit a few of the tea lights I’d found
and put them on the coffee table, creating just enough light in the middle of
the room.

“Kind of creepy at my house and I’m home alone.” Riley
hinted as he took a seat on the floor next to me. I was sitting cross legged
with my back against the sofa.

“Oh well, you’ll have to stay here then,” I said a little
too confidently for me. I think the semi-darkness was helping. I knew he
couldn’t see me properly, as I could not see him clearly. I could only make him
out through the shadows.

“I’ve never met anyone like you.”  Riley said, just
like that.

“What do you mean?” I whispered. I wasn’t sure I was
going to like the answer. He could just mean I’m really weird and strange and
he’s never met anyone as totally nutty as I am.

“You’re just so different.” I could actually feel his
warm breath on my cheek, we were sitting so close. I hardly dared to move.

“In a good or a bad way?” I just about managed to
whisper.

“Good.” Riley was so close to me now, I realised I was
holding my breath and reminded myself to actually breathe. And then the next
thing I knew Riley’s lips were touching mine, kissing me! He was so confident;
I can’t believe he just went for that, not that I’m complaining. As I kissed
him back, I felt strangely better that it was dark.

Riley finally broke away and I could tell he was staring
at me. I didn’t know whether I should say something; at least the darkness hid
my blushes. Ah, it was ok...I didn’t have to say anything at all, Riley
practically grabbed me and was kissing me again!

He was holding me really firmly. I know this is the
moment I’d been going over and over in my head ever since I’d first seen Riley
moving those boxes into next door, but Sam just kept popping into my head! I
kept thinking of all the time I’d spent with Sam, the stuff he used to say and
the way he used to kiss me. And then the thought of the day he was caught doing
things he shouldn’t with my sister. Ouch that thought just really hurt.

I wanted to slap myself, what the hell was wrong with me?
I was here with possibly the most gorgeous boy in school and I couldn’t get Sam
Smith out of my head. Riley was getting all touchy feely now. He was way too
confident considering I don’t really know him all that well.

“Charley! Charley!” Peter was calling me and I wriggled
away from Riley. I actually felt a little bit grateful that Peter had
interrupted us like that. I couldn’t get all those confusing feelings out of my
head and Riley was being way too forward. It was all a little over-whelming.

I spent ages (longer than I would normally) making sure
all was well with Peter. Was I any closer to winning the bet with Ella or did
Riley try this sort of thing with lots of girls? I wanted to believe the first
one but I wasn’t so sure. I tried to convince myself that Riley coming round
tonight had totally taken me by surprise and that was the reason that
everything felt so weird. Yep, that must be it and I did feel a tiny bit smug
when I thought of Ella...well a lot if I’m honest.

“You’re still here then?” I said, as I finally rejoined
Riley.

“Yep. Are you trying to get rid of me?” Riley sounded
totally surprised which made me want to laugh. I don’t suppose girls normally
try and get rid of him.

“Nah, only joking.” I smirked as I sat down next to him.

“Didn’t think so,” Riley said. God, he was so sure of
himself, it was unbelievable! I heard the door slam behind us and I naturally
assumed Mum was back and instinctively edged slightly away from Riley.

“Well well, what have we got here?” I heard Ella’s annoying
voice. “Riley......is that you?” her voice had changed from cocky to shocked in
a matter of seconds. Ha! She’d just realised it was Riley I was with, in the
candle lit room. In your face Ella!

“Hi!” Riley was edging away from me when he realised it was
Ella, which obviously bugged me. “Power cut,” Riley offered her an explanation,
much to my ever growing annoyance.

“Oh,” Ella sounded a lot happier now.

“Charley was scared....”

“What?” I cut Riley off mid-sentence.

“Aw how sweet. So nice of you Riley, looking after my
little sister. Looks like you were doing the babysitting instead of Charley!”
Ella took a seat on the sofa behind Riley and then he shifted himself up and
sat next to her. Great.

“Did Charley come and ask for your help, all alone in the
dark?” Ella was mocking me.

“
He
came round here!” I snapped. I was getting
really wound up now.

“Actually Jay told me to come and check on Charley. He
said she was home alone.” Riley was once again offering an explanation to Ella
and I was starting to get really pissed off.

“Jay?” I asked slowly. That was weird, why would Jay
care?

“Yeah,” Riley answered, “So? I was grateful to get away
from
him
to be honest.”

“Tell me about it.” Ella agreed. “Siblings can be so
annoying!”

I was too busy thinking of what Riley had just said to
react to Ella’s bitchy little comments. Riley is such a liar. He had said he
was home alone and then he’d just said Jay was there.

“I thought you said you were home alone?” I questioned
Riley just as all the lights and the T.V. came blaring into life. Oh my god,
just how close was Ella sitting next to Riley; she might as well have just
climbed onto his lap!