Previously:
“Porter scores again!” Alice yelled, “And with a straightie too! Extra points for conversion!”
Bette turned back to head inside and felt the smile drop from her face. Tina was stood at the bottom step. Despite the distance between them, Bette could see how her eyes glistened. Without a word, she left. Bette’s mind flashed back to the way Tina had been so scared of her feelings. Now she’d broken the trust by opening her big mouth.
“Damn it!” She kicked the nearest seat, hard. She set off in the same direction, trying to ignore the sharp throbbing in her foot.
* * * * *
As Tina hurried to the bathroom, Helena’s words came back to her. She was furious at herself for being sucked into Bette’s trap. She thought of her stupid confessions the previous day, how pathetic had she looked? Had Bette been laughing about that too?
For the first time, Tina was looking forward to her father uprooting them again. Meanwhile, she vowed not to let herself get played again. Wiping her eyes, she headed off to the English class she knew Bette would be sharing.
Chapter 9:
Bette knew she’d blown it. She saw it the second she laid eyes on Tina’s tearful eyes. Her silence had screamed more than a little admonishment at Bette’s behaviour.
As she walked to her locker, her mind not focused on what classes she had to attend but instead replaying her boastful mannerisms and how they must’ve appeared. As she walked, she felt the pain in her right foot where she’d kicked the bench. Although she suspected her little toe was badly bruised, she did not wince at the pain. In her eyes, she deserved some sort of pain.
As she turned the corner, she felt someone join her side, matching her steps.
“Hello Bette” the voice came.
“Wha-? Oh, uh.. Hey, Helena” Bette said, indifferently and walked faster, leaving the British brunette behind.
Helena frowned at Bette’s reaction. It was a well known fact that the two girls used to resent one another. Bette always got on really well with Helena’s mother; a feat Helena, herself, had never mastered. This caused a lot of animosity in previous school years, but unexpectedly, their peers watched as their friendship took root at the beginning of Senior Year.
What no-one saw was the harbouring of an unrequited obsession on Helena’s part. Every time she watched that gorgeous face light up, it evoked her own toothy grin. Whenever that head of perfectly curled tresses passed her by, she felt herself tighten with want. That was what prompted her to exaggerate Bette’s love life to the new girl. The blonde-haired beauty was her biggest threat. The large-breasted bimbos Bette usually enjoyed did not induce that sort of jealousy, but Helena had heard from Alice that this one was different. Apparently Porter was already smitten. Helena had gritted her teeth as Alice shared this little piece of ‘gossip’ over the phone.
Seeing Bette blow her off made her idly wonder whether she’d yet spoken to Tina. When she’d exaggerated that morning about her bed-hopping, she had not expected to feel this bad. She’d been prepared for the smug happiness when the two fell apart, but this fresh feeling of remorse took her by complete surprise.
“Oh, Helena. You are a fool” She muttered to herself, heading toward her class.
* * * * *
Tina sat in her seat, as assigned by the teacher the previous day. The seat from which she’d first laid eyes on Bette. She cursed herself but could not help her eyes moving to the spot where Bette’s vacant desk sat. She let the slightest of sighs escape her before she remembered her bathroom promise to herself and began readying herself for the lesson.
As Bette entered the room, she more felt it than saw. She was facing forward and a movement in the farthest right of her peripheral vision roused each of her senses. Without turning her head, she knew Bette had entered the room. She flicked open her notebook and began perfecting a doodle she’d started the previous night.
A shadow crossed the page and without raising her head, she looked at the legs stood before her desk. The long, slender legs that had caused daydreams that made her flustered just thinking about. Still, her hand worked at the sketch.
“It’s brilliant, T” she heard above her. Her hand stopped instantly; the voice was dripping with sincerity. Bette Porter was a brilliant actress, Tina had to give her that credit. She stayed silent but didn’t resume drawing.
Standing over the blonde locks she so wanted to reach out and caress, Bette was struggling to remember why she was there. Tina’s stationary hand prompted the thoughts that she was being heard.
“T, what you heard. I was..” Bette paused and bit down on her lip, “Tina, please look at me. I’m not here to offer excuses; I just want you to know something. Please”
In spite of herself, Tina raised her head to stare into the eyes she’d recently become so familiar with. She raised an eyebrow to indicate she wanted her to go on. She sat back in her seat, feigning a confidence she didn’t feel. She crossed her arms over her chest, knowing it was a position that Bette would recognise as defensive.
“I’m not used to this. Whatever this is.. The bravado I put on for my friends was completely selfish; entirely for my own benefit. It let me fool myself for a minute that you were just another girl. Nothing more; just someone I could play with and then forget. But you’re not. T, you’re not.. It’s diff-” she was cut off.
“Ok class, please be seated and we’ll begin where we left off last lesson” the teacher called out.
Bette sighed heavily and looked pleadingly into the eyes below her. She took her seat and Tina watched as she tore a page from her jotter pad. Moments later she felt a note land beside her right arm. Seeing Bette nodding unsubtly toward it nearly elicited a giggle, but she restrained herself and took the note.
I know I’ve been an idiot. Let me finish what I tried to say. Please? B xx
Tina looked up and shrugged. Bette’s face twisted in frustration and Tina couldn’t help smiling. She felt herself concede and nodded quickly, forcing Bette’s face into one of the biggest smiles she’d ever seen. Tina tried in vain to steady her fluttering heart; Bette’s smile was too much to handle when she was trying to remain angry. She knew then that her annoyance wouldn’t last long.
“No stamina, Kennard” she chuckled to herself.