4 "YOU'LL LIKE THEM!" BUT DID SHE?

[Continuation]

"I deserve another piece."

He chuckled at her and she could not help up bite her lips hard, not matching eyes with his bold ones.

It was not helping that he was then taller than her. She used to be before leaving for Philly.

Leaning down on her, one hand holding the popsicle up to her face and the other backed against the locker, leaving no space for her to retreat unless she would dare to push past him and make him run after her.

That was the highlight of going to school together before graduating from middle school and his staying behind to complete his year.

He would chase her around and without a care, she would speed up her legs, laughing her heart out as she would hear him yelling out her name, tilting her neck to look back at him.

Both their parents had been called numerous times by the principal to make those two come to cooperate with the school's terms of disciplinary conduct.

Beth was elated when Della graduated middle school and started high school, away from the Randall boy.

The school had separate divisions for middle school and high schools on the same campus.

"Shawn!! Lunchtime is over."

His friends yelled, breaking the moment, and making her slowly push him off.

"Go get it from your new friends."

She said, feeling disappointed that he had made new friends, without her knowledge.

"I'm coming..."

He excused them off, standing afar. They walked away. He knew that it was going to make her, if not angry, upset.

"What was I supposed to do? You were gone for not six days, but six long months...they came to me."

He started and she continued to maintain her sour face, not glancing back at him but out to the space.

When they were together, there was no need to make friends. Even if the class were not the same, they would always make time to see each other in between.

"Plus they are not new. You know them."

He stated.  Of course, she remembered them. He had introduced her to them after his first basketball class.

"Adella, this is Jax, Patric, Mark, and Simon...from the basketball team."

Ever since he had joined the school basketball team to prepare and play for them once he graduated middle school, new guys and girls approached them, to be exactly just him.

"We can have lunch with them you know."

"What's wrong just being us?"

She questioned, looking up at him from her lunch box. It was just the two of them on the table, as usual.

"We can discuss a bit about the game. Coach has asked us to get to know each other if we wanted to make a good team."

"You can talk about games during classes."

"Why are you so opposing about the idea though?"

His insistence made her uncomfortable. She did not want to argue about it. If it had not been told yet, they could be the best of best friends but also fight like cats and dogs, to the point of turning the surrounding environment toxic.

And she did not want to start another episode. Could he not understand that she just wanted it to be with him?

"Because I like it only with you...don't you too?"

"Of course, I do..."

His reply right away made her at least calm down. But there were a few words still to be spoken out. With his eyes on hers, he let it out.

"We will keep the game in the gaming class then. Settled!"

He nodded. Her face itself pulled out for a smile. And his chuckle back made her heart melt right on the spot.

But with her gone for six long months, it was inevitable that his table would not remain empty and they joined in.

The more he got to know them, the more he got close to them. He realized that other than her, there could be people who he would grow to like.

"Right...all I know about them are their names, which I do not even remember."

Della spat out, turning her back on him to get her notebooks from the locker for the upcoming class.

He knew that he had finally managed to piss her off. He waited for her to turn back and face him.

"Well then join us..."

"Lunch is over."

"After school silly!"

He smiled at her. She narrowed her eyes at him. What did he mean by after school?

"So you hang out with them after school too?"

He could not help but curse himself for revealing that information without any intention of it.

Just being him and her together, he had not come to know when she had gotten so possessive of their time together.

"After school, we practice...you can join then."

He added and it calmed down the storm for then. He sighed in relief as she did not say another word and started to walk forward.

He waited for her to say 'yes', that she would give it a try, or not, or anything at all.

"See you in the court!"

He grinned internally and she heard him. Although not turning back to look at him, she felt herself go jolly too.

As the final bell went out, she packed her bags in a hurry, without any more waiting, she ran to the basketball practice court and she found him there playing with the boys already.

"Who are you here for?"

She tilted her neck to see four to five girls there. She was not alone in the sitting area.

"She is Shawn's cousin."

The other one behind the blond said. And that made Della deny it right away.

"I m not his cousin."

"So you are here for him?"

The blond pressed her question back. Della found it uncomfortable to be with the girls when all she had ever been was with him and only him, and sometimes Mapples joined them too.

"Adella, you came!"

The boys got off the court and joined the girls. Shawn was happy to have her. The guy from behind him went ahead and wrapped his arms around the blond that was questioning her a while ago and kissed her lips.

It made Della's eyes go wide. It was not like she had not seen anyone kissing. Shawn's parents were kissing day and night before them. Her class had some star couples too.

"They are boyfriend and girlfriend."

Shawn whispered it into her ears, standing beside her. The others greeted her back, being new.

"I do not like them."

"You did not even spend any time with them."

"I did."

"No, you did not."

Their whispering game back and forth continued until Jax interrupted in between.

"We are having a party in the evening, you must join us, Della."

He offered and before she could deny it, Shawn told her that she would come with him. She glared back at him.

"You will like them."

And no...till the present date, she could not end up liking them.

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