Chapter Twenty-Five Artemis
Chapter Twenty-Five
Artemis
Ryan, Jenna, Jason, and I are all sitting together at lunch.
We’re talking about silly things and I’m surprised and glad to see this calm, happy side to Ryan.
He hasn’t smiled yet, but he’s having a good time with my brother and best friend.
It’s weird to think that only a few days ago, he sat alone at a table or in the art room.
Jenna and Jason kiss and rub noses, and I catch Ryan looking at me. I’m not really ready to display our relationship all over school and it doesn’t look like he is, either. So we’re fine with holding hands under the table.
“Any special plans for your three-year anniversary?” I ask the lovebirds.
Jenna and Jason smile at one another, with love shining in their eyes. “Yeah,” Jason says, taking Jenna’s hand. “Got lots of stuff planned.”
Jenna giggles.
Ryan looks at me, and I finally, finally see something spark in his eyes. I’m not really sure what it is, though. Does he want what they have one day? I sure as heck do.
Will Ryan and I make it to three years? Will we be together forever? I’m only sixteen and too young to be thinking this, but I don’t think there is anyone else out there for me. And from the way he’s looking at me, I’m pretty sure he feels the same.
When the bell rings, all of us groan. It’s like we can’t get enough of our girlfriends/boyfriends. I wonder if we’ll always be this way.
We get to our feet and make our way to our classes. A hand grabs my arm and I’m hurled back into the cafeteria.
Brianne stands before me, her friends flanking her on either side. Great. I know where this is headed, and I roll my eyes.
“Seriously, Brianne? Just let it go. Ryan doesn’t want you, it’s really pathetic.”
Her hands shoot to her hips. Then she tilts her head from right to left. “I’m pathetic?” She snorts. “No guy was paid to take me to the school dance.”
My lips press together. “What?”
She and her friends exchange a wicked laugh. She steps toward me, shoving her phone in my face. I stare at the video, where Ryan and Jason are sitting on the school steps. They’re talking about Jason paying Ryan to ask me to the dance.
My heart stops pumping and my blood grows ice cold.
With a satisfied smile on her face, Brianne drops her phone into her bag. “Wow, Artemis. You’re such a loser your brother has to pay guys to ask you out.”
Tears want to prick my eyes, but I don’t let them. Because it’s not true. Ryan would never accept money to take me to the dance.
Then I remember him telling me that money’s tight. That he’s helping out his grandma with her pills, and that he wants to buy that guitar.
But it’s Ryan. He…he wouldn’t.
Brianne and her friends burst out laughing. She’s so loud, it’s like she’s got a megaphone. They might as well hear her on the moon.
I glare at her. I can run away like a scared little thing, or I can hold my head up high and not let this get to me. For all I know, that video is fake. Yeah, it has to be fake.
My brother and boyfriend would never do this to me.
Pushing Brianne aside, I march to class, keeping my chin up. They can laugh all they want, but I know my boyfriend. Ryan is a good person. Even if he was desperate for money, he wouldn’t use me. No way.
His eyes catch mine as I walk into the classroom. But I don’t have a chance to ask him about it because the teacher comes literally five seconds later and starts the lesson.
I don’t think about what Brianne just told me. I’m not going to let that fake video derail me. Because there’s no way Ryan Rogers would hurt me that way.
***
“Something weird happened today after lunch,” I say to Ryan as he and I are sprawled on the grass in our special place at the park. He’s lying on his backpack and my head is on his chest.
He plays with my hair, which sends tingles all over me. “I wondered where you disappeared to. Everything okay?”
I sit up, causing his hand to drop from my hair. “Yeah. Everything is fine. It’s just that Brianne is so crazy about stealing you from me, she’s even making fake videos.”
His eyebrows scrunch up. “What?”
I roll my eyes. “She showed me a video of you and Jason sitting on the steps today. You were talking about how he paid you to take me to the dance.” I snort. “I don’t know how she made that fake video. I guess she knows someone. I mean, there’s no way that’s true.” I look at him. “Right?”
Guilt and pain crowd his eyes. “Artemis—” He reaches for me, but I pull back.
“Wait a second. It is true? My brother paid you to take me to the dance?”
His mouth opens, but no words come out.
I shakily get to my feet. “Oh my gosh. He paid you to take me to the dance.” I knew it was too good to be true. Why would a guy like Ryan ask me? “Did he pay you to be my boyfriend, too?”
He reaches for me again, but I bend away. “Artemis—”
“No! Don’t you dare touch me. I can’t believe this. All this time, I actually thought you liked me. But it’s fake.” I gesture toward us. “All this has been fake!”
Spinning on my heels, I stalk out of the park. He calls after me, but I don’t look back. I don’t want anything to do with him. Ever again.
I was so, so stupid. Putting so much of myself, of my heart, into him. Making myself vulnerable, letting myself believe that Ryan had strong feelings for me.
No guy has ever wanted me. Why did I think it’d be different with him?
“Hey, sweetie,” Mom greets as I shove the front door open and pass the kitchen. She gapes at me as I march past her up the stairs to my room. No, not my room. The traitor’s.
I fling Jason’s door open, where he’s sitting at his computer. He turns to me with wide eyes. I probably look like a madwoman and I don’t care.
“Art? Are you okay?” he asks.
I stomp over to him, pinning fiery eyes on him. “No, I’m not okay.”
He holds up his hands like shields, getting to his feet. “Artemis, what the heck is wrong with you?”
I narrow my eyes. “Oh, I don’t know. Maybe I’m super pissed because I found out you paid Ryan to take me to the dance.”
His eyes widen and mouth drops open. “Oh, man…you’ve got to let me explain.”
I turn away from him.
He places his hands on my shoulders. “It’s not what it looks like.”
I narrow my eyes. “Did you pay him or not?”
He sighs. “I did.”
I’m about to push his hands off, but he says, “Just let me explain.”
I tap my shoe on the floor. “Fine. Whatever.”
He rubs the back of his neck, keeping his other hand firmly on my shoulder like he’s worried I might take off. “You were so upset that no one asked you to the dance. You were crying that you wanted to go with Ryan. So…I asked him to take you.”
I give him a look. “You mean you paid him.”
He holds up his free hand. “Okay, I paid him. But I thought I was doing the right thing. I just wanted to make you happy, sis. I didn’t think…”
“What? That I’d like him that much? You knew I had a crush on him. What did you think would happen? That we’d have a nice time at the dance and I’d forget about him?”
He scrubs his hand down his face. “Okay, I screwed up and I’m sorry. But Ryan is a good guy. You know that.”
I throw my hands up. “I don’t know anything anymore. And I don’t want anything to do with him.”
He shakes his head, sighing heavily. “He returned the money to me right away.”
“What?”
“He thought it was wrong that he was paid to take you out. He said you were great and he was having an awesome time. And that it wasn’t right to take my money.
He quickly gave it back, like he didn’t want anything to do with it.
So you see, Art, Ryan likes you, really likes you. From the bottom of his heart.”
I’m quiet as I try to process his words. “So…he had fun with me and was happy he came with me?”
He nods earnestly. “He was. And he was kicking himself for taking that money. Art, I think he loves you.”
My body feels hot and cold at the same time. I back away from him. “No…he just thinks he does.”
He steps toward me, placing his hand on my shoulder. “You know that’s not true. Ryan is a good person and he makes you happy. Ever since you guys started hanging out, I’ve seen a change in you. And I see a change in him, too. Go to him, Art. You know you want to.”
I sink down to the floor. Ryan returned the money because he didn’t feel right getting paid to take me.
He really had a good time with me? He told me he couldn’t stop thinking about me after the dance.
And I know that’s not because he was paid to feel that way.
He truly, truly has strong feelings for me.
I can try to argue with myself as much as I want, but I know him. I know the truth.
He saw something special in me that I didn’t see in myself. He became my friend, and then more than that, not because anyone paid him to. He was just following his feelings.
And I was such a jerk to accuse him.