When Its Least Expected (14 page)

She nodded her head briskly. Yes, she’d be okay; no more tears. She was done with
tears.

It was time to keep moving forward and to forget about Mason – about his kisses, his
snarkiness, his ability to make her tummy flip on command. Ugh. Dammit. This wasn’t
going to be easy

though, was it?

Do not let Mason get to you … Do not let Mason get to you.

Harley had been repeating that ridiculous mantra for over ten minutes before finally

taking her seat in first hour. She was waiting on bated breath for him to show. She
had definitely made it her goal to avoid him at all costs today, and if she did have
to speak to him, it’d be two words – tops. After his weird, multi-personality behavior
in the park yesterday afternoon, Harley didn’t exactly know what to expect from Mason
anymore.

“Good morning, class. I hope everyone is enjoying their Friday! I have a special surprise

for you all, for today is the day to … Oh, well, if it isn’t Mr. Daniel? So nice of
you to join us today. If you would be so kind as to visit me after class for your
detention slip for the tardiness you so rudely displayed here today, I would greatly
appreciate it.”

Harley whipped her head up at the teacher’s words. He
had
come after all. She rubbed the back of her neck, watching curiously at Mason strolled
into the classroom door, shoulders

slumped. Her eyes widened at the site. He looked awful with his beautiful hair more
astray than usual and his eyes dark, hooded, and completely blank, both decorated
precariously with black circles underneath. Tag that with the bruises perfectly proportioned
along his jawline, and he looked downright dangerous. It was safe to assume that his
little brawl in the hallway with Toby yesterday created those skin imperfections.
The dark circles though? She had no idea…

Harley stiffened, going on high alert as she tried like hell to keep her eyes

downturned as when he walked by. Unfortunately, as always, she was drawn to him and
sucked

into his gaze like she had no other options.

He nodded at her, nothing more, as he took the seat behind her. Harley couldn’t help
but

squirm as she nibbled on her pencil eraser. She was like a live wire, ready to burst
from the overabundance of electricity in the air, but after two simple minutes, she
felt too twitchy. She had to get the hell out of the room or else...

“Miss Anderson … Tsk, tsk … I suggest you do your bathroom business before my class

from now on, understood?” With a quick nod of agreement, she stood, grabbed the pass
from the jerk of a teacher with his dorky tortoise shelled bifocals, and made her
escape.

“Yes, sir. I’m sorry. It won’t happen again,” she lied, exiting the class with her
eye

rolling kept to a minimum. She looked back over her shoulder before leaving; knowing
somehow that Mason was still eyeing her, but what she didn’t expect to see was that
smart ass grin on his face.

Oh the damn nerve of this guy! Ugh!

When she finally rounded the corner and headed into her new solace, she finally

took her first deep breaths in what had seemed like hours. She splashed her overly
flushed face with some ice cold water and blinked away the moisture as it dripped
into her eyes. Vaguely, she heard the door to the bathroom open up behind her but
didn’t pay much attention.

Just as Harley finished up grabbing a scratchy paper towel to dry her hands in the

process, the most god-awful sobbing sounded from the first stall. She wanted to walk
away. She had enough drama to deal with, but being the nosey, yet helpful person she
was, Harley decided it was her girl given right to make sure whoever was crying was
okay.

By the time she knocked on the door, the sad little feminine sobs erupted into full
out

hiccupping cries. “Um, are you okay in there?” The sniffles continued, but the sobs
quieted, thank God.

A scratchy voice responded. “I’m fine. Just leave me alone please.” Harley bit her
lip,

almost agreeing, but the part of her that felt obligated to stay took over.

“Sorry. That’s not going to happen. I need to see you to know that you’re genuinely

gonna be okay. So just do us both a favor, and open up.” Harley waited impatiently,
her finger nails tapped on the stall door. Finally, the small silver lock switched
open, revealing a tiny, blotchy faced blonde girl with a set of very familiar blue
eyes.

Harley’s mouth flew open as the recognition set in. It was Mason’s sister!

“You’re, um, Maisy, right?” The girl’s eyes narrowed in confusion as she studied

Harley, and then her own recognition must have hit because she instantly paled. Never
did

Harley expect the girl to burst into an even bigger set of tears.

“Oh, God, pleeeeease don’t tell my brother you saw me like this. He’ll flip, and then
he’ll baby me. I can’t handle being babied right now,” she pleaded, moving closer,
only to wrap

Harley in a fierce hug.

Harley grinned, hugging her back. The idea of Mason taking on the big brother role
was a

swoon worthy moment in the making. “Don’t worry. My lips are sealed, as long as you
tell me what’s wrong.” Maisy stared up at Harley, an obvious unease passed through
her eyes. Harley waited patiently though as Maisy so obviously struggled with her
words.

“Well, there’s this boy I like, and his name is Aric.” She moved towards the white
tiled

wall and slouched down against it, her eyes glazed and wishy-washy. Harley had seen
that face before. Hell, she’d experienced that face first hand just yesterday.

“And I just saw him in the hall this morning with my now
ex-
friend Chelsea. The little skank hoe was all over him, freaking pawing him like some
sort of cat. I mean, I thought he liked me, you know?” She paused and looked up at
Harley again, her jaw was tight, and her eyes were still wet. “He even agreed to go
to that homecoming dance with me.”

Her rambling words would have been quite humorous if the tears had stayed at bay.
She

stood again, a girl who obviously suffered from some serious can’t-sit-still issues,
and finally made her way to the sink.

“You wouldn’t happen to be talking about Chelsea Pageman, would you?” The super slut

of HHS had struck once again. The girl used to stalk Harley’s brother. Hell, she was
almost positive that they had probably hooked up on occasion, but like everyone else
after the accident, Chelsea decided David wasn’t worth her time. The last Harley heard
was the girl had her claws dug deep into Toby. Those two deserved each other.

“Yeah, that’s her. You know her well? I thought she was my friend and stuff. Guess
I was

wrong.” She shrugged and sighed, picking at her nails as she faced Harley’s reflection
in the mirror. “Man … I hate girls. No offense,” she shook her head and wiped a hand
down her face.

Harley smiled softly, “None taken.” Something was digging inside of her as she stared
at

Mason’s sister’s profile. A need was more like it, a need to protect, to comfort,
to hug, and Harley was
not
a hugger. Obviously those Daniel siblings knew how to bring out the old softie in
her.

“I do know her though. We’ve gone to school together since kindergarten. She’s kind
of

a, you know, b with a capital b. I’m sorry you got mixed up in her drama.” Harley
had a few extra choice words that she’d like nothing more than to say about Chelsea,
but time was of the essence. “What was Aric doing when you saw them together by the
way? Was he responding to

her?”

She tilted her head to the side in what appeared to be thought before actually responding.

“Well, honestly, if I can remember correctly, he was watching me, and he looked
horribly
uncomfortable. All I could actually see was that bitch groping him with her slimy
hands. God, how could I have been so stupid?” Maisy slapped her hands against the
sink, but the tears were thankfully gone.

“You should talk to Aric. See what he says when you ask him about it. If he acts

suspicious, then you’ll know the truth. If not, then you’ll have your answer.” Harley
moved forward to stand next to her by the sink, her arms crossed in front of her as
she sighed heavily.

“Besides, Chelsea Pageman is a tramp times ten; there’s no better word for her.” Maisy
giggled and looked up at her at Harley under her heavy bangs. “I wouldn’t worry until
you knew the

whole truth, Maisy.” Her eyes brightened slightly, and she nodded. For the first time
since they started this conversation, a smile had appeared upon her lips.

The conversation eased a little, and for a while longer, the two of them chatted like
old

friends. Then the bell rang, and Harley cursed out loud, smacking her head with her
palm. She had spent the entire first hour in the bathroom. Damn … she was so screwed!

“Oh, god, Harley! I’m so sorry I kept you here,” Maisy freaked, grabbing her arm.
“I

have a free period for first hour. Normally I’d hitch a ride on the bus, but Mason
brought me today. I wanted to see Aric before class, but then I saw him with
her
and –”

“Hey,” Harley smiled reassuringly while patting her head. “Don’t worry. It wouldn’t
be

the first time I skipped class. Just ask your brother.” Harley bit her lip and turned
away. God, her mouth was big.

Maisy smiled a knowing smile as she hitched her back pack over her shoulders. “He’s
a

good guy, you know, I promise. A little hard on the outside, but once you get to know
him, he turns into this big snuggly teddy bear.”

Harley blew a stream of air from her mouth grabbing a hold of her own bag. Yeah, she’d

seen the snuggly side, but she’d also seen the
I’m going to kiss your until your brains bleed
side as well. She was already corrupted by his many personalities. “Don’t worry,
Maisy. I know what I’m getting myself into.”
Kind of. Sort of. Not really though.
“I’ve gotta grab my stuff and face the wrath of my teacher.”

Harley began to turn away, but Maisy grabbed hold of her shoulder. A sweet and gentle

smile appeared on her lips as Harley glanced back at her. “Hey, um, thanks, Harley.
For

everything. You’re a good person.”

“No problem. I’m here anytime you want to talk. Your brother has my number, so if
you

ever need to chat, then just give me a call.”

“Thanks, Harley! I might just do that.”

“Don’t mention it.” Maisy nodded, whipping her body around and half skipping through

the door. Harley laughed as she watched her blonde ponytail bob away behind her. Man
she was perky. Cheerleader perky, actually, but she was also one of the most genuine
girls Harley had ever met. It was going to be easy to be her friend.

Two minutes later, her homeroom came into focus, and Harley held her breath as she

entered. To her surprise, she found the seats and front of the class completely empty.
Maybe today would be her lucky day after all! That is until she turned around and
ran face first into the white haired monster called her teacher.

Whoops…

“Ah, so you decided to come back after all, Miss Anderson.”

“God, Mr. Carls, I’m so sorry I missed class.” Her apology was half assed, but at
least

she tried. Unfortunately, there was no denying that she’d ditched. “I sort of ran
into a bit of trouble in the girls’ room,” she puckered her lips and shrugged. “You
know … the monthly

kind?”

His face turned cherry red, and his words came out in a rush, “No need for details
Miss

Anderson.” He air batted her away as he turned towards his desk, “I was running down
to the office to pick up more of these lovelies and am glad to return before you actually
left the room.”

He waved his famous pink detention slips at her in the air, eyes raised in that ‘no
excuses’ sort of way.

S
tupid, stupid Mason. It was his fault anyway.

“I
am
sorry, sir.” Harley glanced up at him under her long, black lashes with her puppy
dog eyes right on the money. Just when she thought she had him under lock and key,
her now

most and least favorite voice sounded from the behind.

“I’m here, now what?” She closed her eyes and succumbed to the noise, turning around

to notice Mason casually leaned up against the smart board, his legs crossed at the
ankles and that award winning smirk on his face.

Hmm … maybe he needed a few more bruises added to his face.

“Now, now, Mr. Daniels. No need for the attitude.” Mason rolled his eyes, only to

refocus on Harley with an annoyed glare. “I need you both to please sit down in the
front row for me; that way we can hurry and get started.” Confusion swept over Harley’s
features. Her eyes narrowed as she wondered what the hell he had up his crisp, white
teacher sleeve.

“I have taken the liberty of speaking to both of your next period teachers, and

seeing as you each have no large commitments in their classes today; it looks like
you both will be spending your next hour here with me going over our next class assignment.”

Harley glanced at Mason, and he glanced back. He appeared to look just as confused
as

she was. Simultaneously, they both looked back up towards their teacher, awaiting
the fate that he was so obviously about to invoke on them.

“So, we’re going to be embarking on something new next semester, and I need a couple

of guinea pigs to test it out. I declare you two … my loyal subjects.” Guinea pigs?
Together?

That didn’t sound good.

Harley sat up straighter in her chair, going on high alert. Mr. Carls had been known
to

“embark” on a whole lot of craptastic projects in the past, and knowing that she’d
been paired up with Mason for one of those didn’t settle well with her at all.