Wednesday, February 26, 2014

Chapter 2.50- Bad, Bad Idea

         “So then, Liz walked right up to her,” Roger and Mariah walked home together most days. Not every day, but most. “And get this, she reached down and picked up her leg-”
         Today, however, wasn’t supposed to be a day where they walked home. Usually Roger had his chess league this afternoon, but most of the kids were out with the flu and it had been cancelled.





         “-And then she bent her knee so she could see what an idiot she looked like!” His voice cracked in excitement. Mariah tried not to flinch so he wouldn’t get embarrassed. It happened a lot less lately, but most of the other guys had already finished this part of growing up and she felt bad that he still had to deal with it.
         “So she yanked the toilet paper off of her shoe as fast as she could and then tried to accuse Liz of planting it there! What an idiot. We all just laughed, and when Mrs. Pinkerton came in she asked for a slip to the nurse for stomach cramps. That’s when Liz told her what had happened and Mrs.Pinkerton made her stay in class. It was so awesome,” Roger beamed and Mariah laughed. Kelci deserved a little embarrassment.











         “So are you ready to go?” Roger asked when her mirth had subsided.
         Mariah took in a breath. She hadn’t told Roger because she didn’t want another jealous tirade, and it wasn’t a big deal. But after that story she wasn’t too sure she really wanted to tell Roger that on Thursdays Andre walked home with her where they would work on their project.
         Putting on her biggest smile, Mariah steeled herself for the possible fall out. “Well, you see, usually on Thursdays-”








         “Hey ‘Riah!” She heard Andre call from behind her.
         “I-Walk-Home-With-Andre,” She said through gritted teeth at top speed. What rotten timing. Roger looked like someone had hit him with a frying pan. “Please-don’t-freak-out, he’s-going-to-come-over-here-and-it’s-okay-we-just-talk-about-what-we’re-working-on-next-and-the-project,-okay?”
        “Hey, I got some bad news,” Andre had reached them as Roger continued to stare at Mariah totally deadpan.


         Though she was reluctant to turn her back on Roger she did need to see what Andre wanted.
         “Our babysitter called in sick and my mom needs me to watch my little sister until my folks get off work,” Andre stated. “So I can’t walk you home, I need to run to the elementary school to grab Amber. But I’ll come over as soon as I can okay?”
         “Yeah, sure,” Mariah answered lightly. “Roger will walk home with me.”
         “Great!” Andre reached over and squeezed her wrist, beaming at her. “See you later!”

-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --

         Walking home with Roger had been a bad, bad idea. He’d fumed the entire way, stomping along so quickly that Mariah had to jog to keep up. Out of breath, her feelings hurt, she’d finally let him go on ahead. Only that had seemed to anger him more. What had she done?
         When Andre had finally arrived at her house, lugging a new load of books for them to research, Mariah was short fused and sullen.
         “Hey, ‘Riah?” hearing her nickname made her cringe as the look on Roger’s face when Andre had called it aloud earlier flashed in front of her.






         “Hey, Riah?” Andre asked again, a little louder. This time, she inclined her head, barely, to show she was listening.
         “If you don’t want to work today, I get it,” he said softly. “I mean, that’s kind of a big loss and I’m sure you’d like a little time to grieve. We can work tomorrow instead if that’s better for you.”







         Frowning in confusion, Mariah looked up. Her loss? Roger would come around. They’d probably be texting each other later on that night just like normal.
         “What are you talking about?” She asked bitterly.
         “What do you- do-Your grandma? Your grandma died yesterday. My mom was one of her clients and only heard today. I’m so sorry.”






         Well, wasn’t that just peachy?
         Roger and Mariah had always joked that when the old woman finally died the two would go and dance on her grave. Now that it had actually happened, Mariah wasn’t feeling the joy she’d expected. She closed her eyes, momentarily allowing Abuella to come back and haunt her one more time when she felt the lightest of touches on her wrist and her stomach flipped, bringing her mind back to the present.
         “Aw, I’m so sorry,” Andre said, his voice low. “I shouldn’t have brought it up should I?”






         Mariah moved her arm over trying to go back to the time when Abuella lived here, but his hand just fell to her knee and again her stomach flipped. It flipped and jumped and put most gymnasts to shame every time he touched her and she didn’t want to focus on the present right now. Right now, she wanted to wallow a little.
         “Will you be alright? Should I go?” Andre asked, slowing pushing his hand over some more so he could squeeze her knee.






         Heat flooded her head, making her ears burn and her cheeks feel like she’d just bit into a particularly sour lemon. Using her elbow she forced his hand off of her leg with an exasperated sigh.
         “I will be just fine,” she intoned. “There is no need to worry about me.”
         “Are you sure?” he asked. “I’d hate to force you to work on this when you’d rather spend time with your family.”
         Instead of responding, she just rolled her eyes, going back to the work in front of them.






         “So we’ve both read Lady Chatterley’s Lover,” Mariah said. “And Women in Love and I’m half way through Sons and Lovers-”
          It was taking a lot out of her to finish these. She’d never imaged what the focus of these books could be. She’d assumed they’d be about how life went on. But nooooooo…

         “-I’ve finished it,” Andre added. She raised her eyebrows briefly. It was so weird to her that he liked these books.
         “So I just need to finish it, but I think we can go ahead with the first element we picked which is the timeline of the author’s life and family tree.”


         “No, that’s not right,” Andre leaned in and she could feel the heat from his arm on her knee again. “We were going to do the short biography first. You’ve got the first two mixed up on your list over there.”
         Now she just looked stupid. Sure enough, the list she’d written on the cover of her notebook was indeed out of order. He was going to think she was a real ninny now. Fighting with Roger, Abuella gone (not that she cared,) mixed up lists...
          “It’s alright, it’s alright,” he hurried to reassure her. “Now you said you found an excellent reference book that had some really great info on his life?”






         “Yes,” she said, pointing to the open book in front of him. “It’s a National Biography from the SimOxford on him. Since that’s the SimEnglish official biography on him, and it was where he was born, I figured it would be a really good reference and a great place to start.”
         Andre nodded, giving Mariah courage. She’d been really surprised to find out that he was a lot smarter than she and Roger had given him credit for.
         “Where is it? I don’t see it,” he said, eyes scanning the book.






         “It’s- Oh,” Mariah got on her knees, leaning across him to find the passage. Only the page wasn’t right. She hastily flipped a few pages.
         “Ah, here it is: 1885–1930

                SimBritish novelist and poet.

                Lawrence was born in the coalmining village of SimEastwood, SimNottinghamshire, the fourth child of a miner and a schoolteacher. The conflict between his coarse violent father and refined socially ambitious mother shaped all Lawrence's subsequent attitudes to relations between men and women. He was a sickly boy and his mother made considerable sacrifices- There you go.”






         “That also is the only mention I could find that stated his father was violent,” she sat back down, continuing to expound on her discoveries. “All the rest simply say his father was a ‘coarse’ or an ‘ignorant man’ and then gloss over the rest of Lawrence’s childhood until he goes off to high school.
         “So I’m not sure we ought to include it, since it’s the only reference material we have that particularly states violent. However, it looks like his early years will only need a paragraph, which is perfect if we’re going for…”
         Andre had never let her ramble on that long without adding something.






         Turning her head she saw that he appeared lost in thought, a half grin on his face.
         He didn’t let her dwell on her thoughts earlier, she wouldn’t let him either.
         “Hey,” she said. He didn’t even flinch.

         “Hey,” a little louder. Still no response. She didn’t want to yell at him. So she nudged his hand.
         “Hey, SimPlanet to Andre.”






         “Right, actually, I think we’ll need at least two paragraphs,” blinking hard, he’d come right back into focus and started in. “Since his mom was such a huge influence on him and also, should we mention his childhood sweetheart and one time fiancé Louie Burrows?”
         Mariah scowled at him. Really?
         “This is supposed to be a short biography, and I haven’t come across much more reference to Louie Burrows outside of that tiny fact.”






          “But I have,” he said, pointing. “See that book? Under the newspaper? It’s got a lot of information about growing up in coal mining communities in SimEngland after World War I. Actually, it’s got a lot about coal mining in SimEngland period.”
         Mariah followed his gaze, frowning. But did they really need that book right now? For this part of the project? It might be needed later, but this was supposed to be a short biography.






         “There was a particular bit about how difficult it was to leave a mining community that could be relevant to Louie Barrows, hang on.”
         Andre closed the book in front of him and leaned across Mariah, grabbing the book he wanted to talk about and bringing it closer.
         “’The County Council Scholarships could sometimes mean a better life for more than just the scholarship recipient,’” he read. “’It often opened doors for the loved ones as well.’ She was a loved one right? If he was engaged to her?”
         Mariah leaned in to look closer. As she did her hand brushed his.






         “I guess, but then aren’t you getting more into social commentary than biography?” she asked, turning to look at him.
         To find him looking back at her was a little odd and her stomach flipped yet again, making her blush a little.
         “I think it’s the point that instead of bringing Louie Barrows out of poverty with him, he chose to break it off to have an unfettered affair with Frieda Weekley, who was still married, for love.”
         “Oh,” she nodded, though to be honest, she wasn’t entirely sure it was relevant to a short biography still. Perhaps to his subject style it might be important?
         Nah, she still didn't see the need for it here. Nope.






         His hand suddenly came up, making her back up a bit. When she opened her mouth to protest he hushed her.
         “You have an eyelash on your cheek,” he said. “I’m just going to brush it off.”
         “You don’t have to-”
         “I know I don’t,” he answered. “But I want to. You’re always so well put together that this tiny little black lash is really out of place.”
         Holding her breath, she kept her gaze on him. Did he really think she was well put together? Mariah had always felt a little plain next to Kelci who always had her hair, makeup and nails perfect.






         “Did you get it?” she asked breathlessly.
         “No,” Andre answered. “It’s being stubborn.”
         He flipped his hand over, trailing fingertips across her cheek.
         “There,” he whispered. “Perfect again.”
         Mariah’s heart leapt up somewhere around her throat and started beating like a hammer against her chest.




         Instead of putting his hand down as she’d expected, he pushed his fingers through the hair at her temples. After he’d teased out a single curl and tucked it behind her ear, he slowly leaned toward her.
         To her surprise she inexplicably leaned forward also.





         When it became impossible to keep her eyes open she officially began to panic. She’d never kissed anyone before! What if she sucked at this? How was this even happening? The closer he came the more her mind reeled.


         Before she really had time to think about this his lips had found hers. She’d finally decided to do more than sit still as stone when he moved on, making his way down her cheek.
         Completely on its own, her arm came up, and she ran her fingers through his hair. First her eyes, now her arm? Or was it her head for leaning in first? Oh Watcher, her body had taken over her brain!



         She gasped a little as his tongue began to trace her jaw. Maybe that was enough of that. The experience was dizzying and thrilling, but phew. She needed to catch her breath. How did she do that?



         Lucky for her, he came back to find her lips again without her intervention. Tracing a finger along the back of his ear, Mariah made a quick decision. This time, for this moment, she’d quit fighting her tangled thoughts and simply surrender.
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --

          Before anyone comments- That’s it! That’s all they did. She had her first kiss, nothing more. For Now. *DunDahDun!!!
          Sorry for the length, but I could Not find a good place to break that one off. And I’m super sorry for the DH Lawrence chatter up there, but it’s kind of important as to what’s going through a couple of teenager’s heads.

          Also- The poses for this chapter are also up for download, including the kisses there at the end. They are specially fitted for teen rigs (No alt shifting! No OMSPs! They Snap!) though there are adult versions available also. And Outtakes! There are a couple of outtakes from this one.

33 comments:

  1. FIRST!!!!!!!!!!!!

    And now I'll read... But I can't right now. I'll be back in a couple hours with a real comment.

    *Points and laughs at Carrie*

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. By one minute! And I technically read it first so HA!
      Ps, Mariah kisses Andre ;) Sorry for the spoiler

      Delete
    2. Hah! Whatevs, still beat you.
      And I already read it before getting down here, so no spoilers. YOU FAILLL! haha :P

      Lol at Kelci getting embarrassed. The old toilet paper on the shoe... Has that ever happened in real life?
      And woah. Roger is NOT happy about Mariah and Andre walking back together! What's that all about? Jealousy? To me he looks like a child who doesn't want to share his toy. Though Mariah felt she should keep it a secret for all this time (weeks? months?), so maybe he has good reason?

      That whole Louie Barrows thing? Yeah, Andre is totally trying to pull some moves there. Casually bring up love and relationships? Totes caj, 'Dre... *rolly eyes* Mariah didn't see it, of course. Even though she has a crush, she's still thinking soley about the project. Especially obvious to everyone else, given the fact that he touches her right after....

      ....And then, of course, the kiss. ANDRE! You have a girlfriend you naughty boy!!! But phew! Mariah has let someone in, but was it the right someone? At least her first kiss wasn't clumsy and slug-like, like most peoples are. At least it was a kiss to be proud of... As long as she never tells Roger... :|

      Don't apologise for the length! I didn't think it was too long. And you must've done a lot of research for their project! You could've made someone up. Or, tbh, you could've just said whatever about DH Lawrence and most of us would've been none the wiser... BUT! I learnt something about my own country, so thanks for that! And Nottinghamshire is the next county over from me (one of 5 bordering counties to mine), and where my cousins grew up! Nottingham itself is murder central of the East Midlands, but Robin Hood used to live there, so it has it's good points!
      /ramble :P

      Delete
    3. Hey now, play nice you two! And Mariah will have you know that for the record, Andre kissed HER. Mariah doesn't find that she's susceptible to Andre's charms, but that he fell for hers. O_o

      Oh yes. I'd wanted to go with she'd tucked her skirt into her undies in the back and didn't know it, but this was far simpler. ;)
      Roger and Mariah are drifting apart a little here. They're both going slightly separate directions. But Roger very much feels like Mariah is his property and someone he needs to protect from Andre. Remember what the two of them thought about Andre when this all began. His opinion hasn't changed, and he's shocked hers has.

      Totes caj... *snort. And 'Dre! LOL! He's really reaching on that one isn't he?

      Oh look! Someone remembered the girlfriend! Yay! And Ah! But remember what Roger and Mariah both insinuated earlier on. He's got a reputation where his 'study buddies' are concerned. Nah, I wanted her to enjoy it. I was afraid if she didn't she'd turn into Layla on me and I'd have to drag her into giving me an heir kicking and screaming. Yes. Roger must never know.

      LOL! Yes, but all that information is very easily accessible and I'm glad you learned something! That's great! And I've now learned that Nottingham still needs it's Robin Hood. Murder central, wow!

      Delete
  2. *Gasp* ...
    .
    I KNEW THERE WAS SOMETHING BETWEEN THOSE TWO!!! Aha! I knew it!
    Ooh! How's Roger going to react? If he can't even deal with her walking home with him... What will this cause? Will Roger stop being friends with her? Will it be a love/friendship triangle? Ah! So many questions. Is this how you feel with mine?
    I prefer her with Andre than Roger. I know people may disagree, but I'm not too keen on Roger now. He seems moody about how she's with Andre. Its not her fault, why is he all mardy about it?
    (I was going to mention something about how near where I grew up there was mining for silver but that's all over now)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Lol! I'm glad it was a little surprise. Hopefully, I've got a lot more in store. ;) Oh, Roger and his reaction. We'll see it if/when he finds out. I promise.

      Roger is extremely jealous and jealous people are not always the wisest. Remember, he hasn't been spending time with Andre like Mariah has and so his original opinion is unchanged. He also feels he needs to protect Mariah the way she once protected him. Couple that with the resentment he feels that his friend might be leaving him behind, the jealousy that someone else is possibly getting her attention, raging teenage hormones, and his own feelings of inadequacy in comparison to her, and her recent inattention (and obviously she's also not telling him everything like she used to do) and you've got Roger. Are his actions helping his case any though? Absolutely not. In fact, he's inadvertently driving Mariah right to Andre.
      I feel this about just about everybody's who doesn't give me the entire story the first second. =D I.Must.Know.NOW! lol

      Oh mention it anyway! Please do! Learning is knowledge and knowledge is power!

      Delete
    2. Knowledge is power in a sense, but then again, power is power.
      I suppose in that way, Roger's reactions seem almost normal. I get it a little more now, I mean, if my friend randomly started hanging out with a popular girl, I would think they're nuts!
      And where I live (Or live next to) used to be a place specialized in mining for steel. That's why our hockey team is called Sheffield Steelers. I think it started up in the industrial revolution but Margret Thatcher put an end to that and now we have a shopping centre instead, so... Yay for shopping!

      Delete
    3. Yeah. Now, I'm not saying what it's doing is the best thing to do to a friend. But his actions are justified in his opinion.

      Woot! Yay shopping! lol Though it would have been far nicer to have had a job that paid you so that you could go shopping wouldn't it? Ha!

      Delete
    4. *is really late reading comment replies*

      Maggie Thatcher killed our country!! Down with government!! (A) <-- failed anarchy sign...

      Delete
  3. Well well well, somehow I don't think Roger is going to like this development at all, I have a sneaking suspicion that he's in love with Mariah himself...

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. And I have a sneaking suspicion you might just be very right! If Roger finds out, we'll see just what his reaction is.

      Delete
  4. Andre's a smooth one isn't he? He's so done this before. But what's with all the commentaries he made about Lawrence, the coalmine and the lover/ fiance thing? Is he hinting to himself? I'm not sure if I like him.
    I don't like Roger either. He drools after Andres girlfriend, but can't stand Maria meeting Andre. It's a shame that Mariah feels she's doing Roger wrong, when he's the one wronging her. They are supposed to be friends, but he puts a lot of rules on her. But he does whatever he feels like. I'm gonna stop now, or this comment will never end.
    Atleast Mariah took the opportunity to stop thinking for a while. Good for her.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Ooooooo! Nicely caught! He has indeed done this before. This is the reputation he has that Roger and Mariah discussed a few chapters ago, that he likes his 'Study Buddies.' And yes, he is hinting to himself. But just what roll do you think he sees himself in? The answer might surprise you. And we should start to get clues as to what's actually going through his head very soon.

      Roger is incredibly hurt and jealous right now and that is making him angry. Angry people rarely make wise decisions. I don't like how he's acting either, but he is doing it. And his actions are unintentionally helping Mariah fall for his rival. As for drooling over Kelci, I'm going with raging hormones made him act like a fool. That's not his usual MO. Not that I've been showing him in the best light lately to show how that was kind of a one off deal, but still. I'm betting he'll eventually figure all of this out and shape up.

      Yes! She needed it didn't she? lol

      Delete
  5. Not first of anything, but at least I'm here! *pants heavily*

    Smooth operator definitely, that one. Also, I get the feeling he has written about 5 essays on DH Lawrence already - quite advanced reasoning for a 17-18 year old! From her too - to be able to distinguish social commentary from biography. Besides, I'm not sure I'd like to be compared with Frieda, if that's Mariah's role (could be Andre who is Frieda too? I mean, since he has a girlfriend and Frieda was married and left her husband for Lawrence.) Besides, wasn't Lawrence bi? I felt there was definitely something going on with that hottie John Middleton Murry! *losing track*

    The poses are awesome! It has to be said, even if I generally can't be arsed to pose my sims.

    Can someone tell the Swedish girl what totes caj means? Totally ok? Or something completely different?

    I see a showdown coming up! Smooth, arty jock boy vs the unsmooth loyal nerd! Who will get the girl! One or none?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. *pretends to be Sunny*
      I'm so glad you love my chapter!!

      *Pretends to be Gemma*
      I'm stupid, and I forget 17-18 is the top end of highschool, I was thinking they were like 15... :| They recently changed the leaving age in the UK to 18, but it was 16 when I left.

      And 'totes caj' is how my boyfriends sister talks. It means "totally casual" haha, sorry. I dont expect anyone else had any idea what that meant.

      Delete
    2. *gets out broom- Who let you out of your corner, Fake Sunny? Shoo! Shoo now! Oh, ok. Well, if you're Gemma and not fake Sunny. lol :P

      You're here! Yay! Glad you can make it!

      I'm thinking Andre is a little obsessed with his works. lol. I'm also going to go with Mariah is a very intelligent teen. She picks up on lots of things very quickly and studies situations to see if she can't figure out how the minds others work. But we'll get to that later... So yes. Rather advanced students, which is why their teacher paired them up too. And Ah! I'll let you find out who is Frieda, who is Louie, and is DH in (*counts on fingers) 2 chapters? Yes. I think 2 more this generation and then Mariah will officially take over and we'll get a nice bright light on what's going on here.

      IIRC, yes. Lawrence was bi. Andre? I dunno. I need to go check on that in game. lol. He might be!

      Aw! Thank you! I'm quite proud of those. And I don't blame you! I can't wait until ****** happens so I can cut back on needing them so much. Soon though!

      Lol! You will know soon enough whether it's one or none. Or, dare I say, two?

      Delete
  6. Every time I read more about Roger, my crush on him gets a little more serious. He's in the chess league? Be still my beating heart. LOL at Kelci being embarrassed over having toilet paper on her shoe. It's always wonderful to see something like that happen to the cheer leader sorts.

    Andre, on the other hand, I'm not so fond of yet (prolly just cause Roger hates him, lol). It's funny how hormonal she gets around him, and I'm just going out on a limb here, and guessing that he is too. At least, him randomly spacing out with a grin on his face seems a bit suspicious.

    Ah. Well-placed comment about love and affairs, next thing you know he's brushing her cheek all soft and sweet, and then...yep. I knew it.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Lol! Yup! Chess. =D I had too. I couldn't resist. YES! It is isn't it? She needed a little something to bring her down a peg. Too bad those types always seem to buoy right back up again far too soon.

      Very hormonal. Ha! And she's having a terrible time controlling it isn't she? Poor baby is just so unused to amorous attentions. If only Roger had a little more confidence in himself, perhaps she'd be more used to it. Oh well.

      Yup. She's about to fall hard isn't she? While he's not the smoothest operator out there, he's far too smooth for the likes of Mariah.

      Delete
    2. ...So, Misty's into geeks. *takes note*

      Delete
  7. I'm caught up! Poor Roger. I feel bad for him, even if he's a dope. I don't trust Andre at all. He's using D.H. Lawrence to get the ladies all hot and bothered (a common tactic for English majors ;)). He's using literature for evil! I cannot stand for that!

    If he hurts Mariah, I will beat him to death with a book. That is a promise. >:)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Congrats on catching up! That's a major feat!

      Lol. Yeah. Roger's having a tough time of it all.

      LOL! Yes he is! And that's hilarious that he's merely plumbing the tactics of English Majors. ;)

      Teehee! I'd kind of like to see that (consults story.) Uhm... hmmm... Well that's interesting.

      Delete
  8. !!!! Aaaand Roger busts in at that very moment to witness the monstrosity of Andre and Mariah kissing. Roger would probably be on the floor with shock if he did see that though, or punch him in the face. Seriously, when Andre approach both Mariah and Roger outside of school, Roger looked like he wanted to two piece him..hard. So fitting.

    Ok sooo should I be ashamed that I haven't read D.H. Lawrence? Ducks and hides** I'm sorry I kinda went dumb as I read over the literature references, apparently I didn't pay much attention in English. :/

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. LOL! Yes! That wide eyed blank stare he gave Andre was awesome wasn't it? He's such a muscley teen I could totally see him taking down that skinny little... oops. Author commentary gone awry there. Sorry. ;) *I know what happens, Must remain neutral!* But that's hard. Ha!

      No. Don't be ashamed. His stuff is... interesting. Misty described his work as rather Crass and I think that is probably the most fitting term for it. As it is, his works won't feature except that you should probably know that he was very obsessed with sex. After that, it's just the story of him leaving his childhood sweetheart high and dry for a mistress.

      Delete
  9. I'm glad you added the references in for DH Lawrence, cause I never read him, lol I was just thinking the other day when I was rereading Romeo and Juliet (for fun, cause I'm strange, lol) that Shakespeare had some risque stuff in there that I didn't remember being in there---it sounds like Lawrence is beyond risque! Interesting topic choice for two hormonal teenagers though, that should make for some interesting study *dates*, lol :P

    I was *almost* liking Andre, thought maybe they would turn out to be friends or something, but then he went and did the whole practiced move thing on Mariah. I hope he doesn't end up hurting her, poor girl has enough troubles at home she doesn't need that. And Roger, he didn't look too thrilled there, haha

    I'm curious to see what happens next, I sort of hope she smacks him (Andre) alongside the head---

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Oh yes! Shakespeare has quite a lot of little references that are eyebrow raising when you think about it. lol Lawrence liked to think that he was a bit of a pioneer in 'free love,' and went a bit overboard with it all. And oh yes. Hormonal teenagers don't need assistance with that type of stuff. Ha!

      Ah, Andre. Yeesh. He's... well. We'll get a much better idea of what he'll end up being in just a few more chapters. No. Roger gave him a dead pan wide eyed death glare. I loved it! I've got another one where he's staring the two of them down I'll put up in the bloopers later on. It's so much fun when the game plays along. Heehee!

      Delete
  10. I am kind of surprised that Andre is actually intelligent and working on this project. Because his reputation was that he lets his study buddies do all the work. That said, I don't trust where he's going with Mariah, because of his reputation. If it weren't for that, I'd be all over him.
    Roger's obvious jealousy would be endearing if he weren't falling allover himself over the bitchy cheerleader, lol.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Ah! But rumors aren't always entirely accurate. Not that they're always lies either as you've noted.

      Yup! But Roger is hormonal. He'll get over it I think though. ;)

      Delete
  11. So far behind, trying to catch up! Ah, the complexities of being a teenager. Every feeling is amplified times a million while trying on different hats to figure out who you want to be. Roger is desperately in love with Mariah, but between his natural awkwardness, their long term friendship, and his jealousy taking over the driver's seat, he doesn't know how to verbalize his feelings. Or at least that's how I'm reading it. His fierce loyalty to Mariah for helping him get past being bullied and for being his first real friend probably plays into his treating her like a possession though he would probably be shocked if he was told that was how he is behaving. Both of them had trouble fitting in for different reasons, but it is a strong bond regardless. Since Roger is now closer to being a man he is feeling the need to protect her from the guy who used to be a bane to his existence, confused as to why Mariah isn't treating Andre as the enemy any longer, and add that mix of confusion to his more than friends feeling towards her has him all over the place behavior-wise-which is just as confusing to Mariah. Has Roger even admitted to himself his feelings for Mariah? If he hasn't. that could be part of his behaving like an ass, too-avoiding the feelings and/or being angry with himself for having them. Andre is definitely using his love of literature to pave the way as a ladies man. Since (to my knowledge) men don't outgrow their preoccupation for sex, this self-styled Romeo wannabe is doubly cursed with those pesky hormones you've been talking about. The Lawrence/Frieda affair probably helps him justify his roaming lips to himself. First, second, and third on the priority list, masculine edition, is getting some (and three spots is all they have room for on their lists to begin with!). As adorable and entertaining as it is to observe and participate in their booty quest, you have to lose respect when one focuses on prey that doesn't understand the rules of engagement. Poor Mariah does not have a clue how to handle a boy/girl relationship. Her ironclad grip on logic to help her navigate the confusing as all hell waters of her childhood won't help her, will likely do the opposite, as she tries to interpret feelings, Roger's behavior, and hormonal based urges with logic as her guide. Does. Not. Compute. I'm sure Andre bringing up her Abuelas death helped bring that logic based shield to the front of her thoughts, too. Sounds like this is going to be a tough stretch for Mariah and Roger and possibly strain their friendship to the point of no return. Geez, sorry for the long winded comment! Maybe having two teenage sons has a bit to do with my rambling...

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Lol! I loved it! It was all pretty spot on too. I think you're the first one to note that Andre brought up Abuela's death and that he was using it to further his own means. And yes, it really is kinda sick that he's pursuing her when he has to know that she has no clue what's going on or what to do in such a situation.

      And I'd think having two teenaged sons would have a lot to do with the above since I'm sure you witness their own attempts through the murky hormonal waters of high school. We consider ourselves lucky that our son is autistic and won't have to deal with a lot of that in the same ways. We're still quaking in our boots just over our youngest going to kindergarten. She's already plagued with more boyfriends than we can keep up with.

      Delete
  12. Oh my gosh, already?! It's both adorable and terrifying! It used to be simple and harmless those little "boyfriend/girlfriend" labels in early elementary, but with kids doing everything soo much earlier than we did, it doesn't feel very innocent anymore from a parental perspective. My oldest is going to leave his teen years behind this year (whew! one down, one to go!) and you are completely correct-murky waters indeed!

    ReplyDelete
  13. Andre, Andre, Andre... You have a girlfriend, man. Maybe it's refreshing to him to have a girl who shares his same interests instead of dating Miss Popular.
    Eyelash... Yeah, right! Haha. Smooth.
    I wonder what's going to happen when Mariah stops letting go and actually thinks about what just happened?

    ReplyDelete
  14. That was kind of cute :D Andre is actually a really sweet guy! Well, if you forget for a moment that he already has a girlfriend...

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. LOL. Pretty big caveat isn't it? xD And sometimes you just need to get to know someone to find out how they really are.

      Delete