New Kid In School - 53. Chapter 52 - "In Sickness And In Health"

My throat burned. My coughing had aggravated it something awful. And my forehead was burning up with fever. Jesus...what did that Benny kid come down with? The black plague? You'd think I'd be able to handle a few random germs from a little boy.

That's probably why Ariel hurried out of here tonight as soon as the rain was over. He probably didn't want to get it too.

Well, I've definitely learned my lesson about looking at the tissue after blowing my nose. I don't even want to imagine where all that slime came from. Real attractive, Randy. I'm sure I'll be the hit of the whole carnival tomorrow morning. Ugh! I kept taking as much medicine as I could without overdoing it. I doubled my dosage of cough syrup a few times, but it was making me so lightheaded and loopy that I decided that might not be such a good idea. I even ate an orange out of the fridge. I mean, Vitamin C, right? Come on, God, PLEASE don't do this to me right now! Not now...

I was watching some cheesy 70's horror flick and beginning to nod off when I heard the phone ring. It was one of those moments when I had just found the perfect position on the couch. The pillows behind my head were just right. The warmth of the blankets wrapped around me were caressing me like a mother's love. And the phone? Well...it was waaaaaaaay over there on the other side of the room.

I didn't want to move. Not an inch. Do you know how hard it is to get this comfortable when you're sick?

I let the machine get it.

"Hey, Randy. Say, man, it's Cody. I wanted to know if you could help me out with something. Give me a holler when you get a chance. Later."

I could have ignored it and easily drifted right back off to sleep...but it's really not like Cody to call if he didn't deem it necessary. Besides, for some reason I always feel guilty when I'm home and I don't answer the phone. I just get up and have to call them right back anyway. Damn...I was soooooo comfy.

As I untangled myself from my blankets, the ice cold air seemed to rush in like an arctic wind. My shoulders ached. My legs ached. Even the bottoms of my feet ached as I shuffled my way over to the phone.

I cleared my throat as I dialed Cody's number and heard it ring. "Hello?"

I coughed instantly. "Hey...it's me. What's up?"

"Dude...I don't know what you just coughed up, but you might want to take care of that before you talk to me." He said.

"No, I'm fine. I just caught, like a...like 48 hour bug or something. I'm cool." I sniffled.

"If you say so." Cody didn't sound convinced. But he didn't seem too concerned either. "Say, what level science classes are you taking this year?"

"What level? Three, I think."

"Shit." He said. "Umm....you wouldn't happen to have Mr. Huett as a teacher, would you? I screwed up and left my textbook in my locker before the weekend and I've got a project due when break is over. I'm in advanced level four classes though, so I can't find anybody else with a book."

I said, "Did you try any of the next year students?"

"Riiiiight. Yeah, I know you look at me and think, 'he's got soooooo many friends at this school! He's sure to get help from somebody', but...no such luck." Personally, I knew that Cody could be a lot of fun to be around, but I could understand why some people might find him somewhat abrasive at times. It's hard to tell if that's a defensive mechanism or if it's just his sense of humor. Maybe a little bit of both. "Ah well, it looks like I'll be homework free for the week. I'm sure it isn't something that I can't bullshit my way through on Monday morning, I was just hoping not to rush. So what are you up to this week?"

"Right now, I'm not up to anything but laying on this couch and trying to get myself better as soon as possible." I said.

"From the way you sound right now, dude, you'll be happy to get better before school next Monday. That's gonna suck."

"I don't sound that bad, do I? I mean...you can hear it?"

"Definitely. It's a downer that you're actually ill. I was hoping that it was just you using your 'sexy' voice to seduce me. It was flattering." He teased.

"Yeah, well...I'm bashing this sickness with everything that I've got right now so I can be all rainbows and sunshine by tomorrow morning."

"What's up with tomorrow morning?"

"A bunch of us made plans to go to the carnival while it was set up. You know, in that big rec center parking lot where they usually have the Farmer's Market and stuff?"

Cody said, "Brand new here, remember? I know nothing of your cultish ways in this town. Sounds like fun, though."

"I'm hoping for the best. It would be a lot more fun if your favorite person wasn't tagging along." I said.

"My favorite what? Hold on...are you telling me that Sean is actually hanging out with you and your boyfriend tomorrow?" I groaned when he said it, but it's not like I had much of a choice. "Why on Earth would you agree to that?" Cody asked.

"I had to. Ryan's been pushing for the 'freedom' to have Sean around and he wants me to trust him. What am I supposed to do?"

"You're supposed to say 'fuck no', and keep your pride and joy from sleeping with the enemy. That's what. I don't think that classifies as psycho boyfriend behavior."

I know that Cody has warned me about Sean until he was blue in the face, but I told him, "I don't think it's all that serious. Maybe it really is just his way of joking around. Or maybe he's just trying to get under my skin or something. The more I let him know it bothers, the more he tries to push my buttons. Whatever I say to him just makes look like more of a heel in front of Ryan. And I don't want to dig myself in any deeper. You know?"

"Well...do you think that Ryan is the type of guy to...you know?" He asked me.

"Type of guy to what?"

"You know. The type to step out on the side? In secret?"

"Ryan? No. He's never been the slutty type. He's always been really sweet, Cody. Really innocent. I mean...he says he loves me. And when he tells me that I've got nothing to worry about...I believe him. I don't have any reason not to."

"Ok. So you trust him. That's good. That's great. It's something to keep in the plus column. But Sean? Don't think that believing in your boyfriend's honesty is going to be enough to rule Sean out as a non-threat. I know the game that he's playing right now...and love? It won't be enough." He said. "Listen, Randy...and listen good...you're going to have to stay alert. Even when you think you'll have a chance to relax, don't relax. He'll be waiting for that. Don't leave them alone together, not even for a second. He'll take as many seductive shots as he can take in a short amount of time. Every last one of them wearing Ryan down and making 'you' look like a lost cause." I was amazed at how Cody basically rattled off a bunch of things to look for, as though he were teaching me to hunt bears in the wild or something. I have to admit, it kind of got me to thinking that maybe I should pay even more attention than I have been lately. "And this carnival thing tomorrow...you've got to watch your footing. Your position, your pace, and everything. Those places have rides that only seat two at a time, and he'll try his best to muscle his way in to riding alone with Ryan while leaving you the odd man out. Just make sure that you stick to him like glue while waiting in line for anything. Got it?"

"Dude...this is an awful lot to remember. Are you sure about this?" I asked.

Cody let out a frustrated sigh, and he said, "Alright...tell you what...if you don't believe me, then check everything out for yourself. See if I'm even half as crazy as I sound."

"How do I do that, exactly?"

"Well...let me take a wild guess here. You guys are all going to meet at Ryan's house tomorrow before you go. Am I right?"

What the...? "Yeah. Well, I mean...what's so weird about that?"

"I'm willing to bet every penny I have that it was Sean that suggested that to him. Like, 'Hey, why don't we all get together at your house and meet up before we go.' Seems innocent enough right?" I don't know how Cody knew our plans for tomorrow, but it hardly seemed like much of a 'move' on my boyfriend. That's when Cody asked, "What time are you meeting up?"

I said, "We figured we'd get together around noon."

"Uh huh, right. Do yourself a favor, Randy. Get there at eleven." He said. When I asked why so early, he told me, "It's one of Sean's little maneuvers. I've seen him pull it a couple of times before. He'll show up an hour early, and hang out in your boyfriend's bedroom for a whole hour, alone, while waiting for the rest of you guys to show up. Just go over an hour early. He'll be there. Trust me. Then you'll see what that I'm not just some paranoid heartbroken teen with a grudge. If you want to keep your boyfriend...you'll take my advice. Ok?"

Thinking about all of this, I suddenly felt really outclassed in this arena of emotional warfare. I don't think Batman could have a more cunning villain working against him, the way Cody went on about it. So...even though I thought it might take a bunch of convincing and exhausting conversation...I asked him, "Do...do you want to come to the carnival with us tomorrow?"

"Well that certainly came out of nowhere." He scoffed.

"No, I mean...I'm not going to remember all of this stuff in the morning. If what you're saying is even close to being true...I might need your help." I said. "Just for one afternoon. Just so I can...you know...figure out what to do. Could you help me? Like...really help me? Without looking like a total jerk in front of Ryan for not having faith in him?"

Cody pretended to think about it for a moment, but then he said, "If you're asking me if I'm all hyped up to go to a carnival...then the answer is no. But...if you're asking me if I'm interested in fucking up Sean's day, then I'll practically backflip all the way there! Count me in." Hmm, that wasn't anywhere near as difficult as I thought it would be.

"Um...ok. Hey, that's great. Dude, you'll have fun."

"I doubt that, but I'll meet you guys there. Just toss me an address and I'll figure it out." He said.

I gave Cody the directions and all. It would be pretty hard to miss a carnival, but like he said, he's still pretty new to the area. And this is one instance where his particular expertise could come in handy. Then, just before hanging up, I said, "I'm going to try to get as much sleep as possible so I can at least be somewhat functional tomorrow."

And Cody's like, "Whatever. I've gotta run anyways. Just remember, Randy...go an hour early tomorrow morning. It's important. K?"

God...I hope he's making this up. Because if Sean really is going after my boyfriend...I really don't know what I can do about that. I could rant and rave and scream up to the heavens, I could threaten him and yell at him and pay a couple of high school thugs to meet Sean in a dark alley and beat him to a pulp. But...at the end of the day...whether or not his seduction works is ultimately up to Ryan. That's the one thing that I can't control. That's the one problem that I can't fight against. If Ryan decides that....that he would rather...

Ok, I'm going to stop doing this to myself. I'm thinking too much again. And there's still a skeptic in me that wants to believe that Cody is a bit over the top when it comes to his ex-boyfriend. He has a tendency to exaggerate, I think. I can't get myself all depressed over nothing. I need to be all giggles tomorrow. I can do that. We'll go to the carnival, we'll have fun, and when we come back, Sean will go home, and Ryan and I will be left to snuggle up somewhere private and enjoy the love that I have come to rely on so faithfully.

He's my Ryan. 'MY' Ryan. Sean can't have him. He's just wasting his time.

There was a certain amount of anxiety that stayed with me all night as I was hoping to take that one long miracle nap that would cure my sickness in a single evening and have me skipping out of the house as thought it had never happened at all. The truth is...not only did I feel just as bad as I did yesterday, but I think I might actually be feeling a bit worse. I was literally 'dizzy' at this point, and if I thought that I could simply call over to Ryan's house and cancel...I would have. But...dammit...NOT if Sean was going to be there. I'm not letting him win that easy.

So I dragged myself out of bed, blowing my nose and wiping the drool from the side of my mouth. My head was pounding with an ache that made it hard to even see straight...but I got in the shower, and washed as many germs off of me as I possibly could. I tried to fix my hair as best as I could, and I gargled with mouthwash three times to soothe the ache of my sore throat. I made sure to keep a handful of cough drops with me, and a tiny pocket sized pack of tissues. I picked out my best casual clothes....so I could look 'dressed up' without being too obvious about it. And when I looked at myself in the mirror, I couldn't help but to be disappointed by the image staring back at me.

My eyes were dull and red. My hair looked thin and stringy. My nostrils were raw and dark pink from blowing so much. I was a mess. But trying to fix myself up only worked to deconstruct my presentable appearance even more. I decided to leave it alone and just...go with it, I guess.

Ugh! Why today? Of all days...why today?

I kept an eye on the clock. There were times when I looked out of my front window, pressing my face against the glass to look down the street towards Ryan's house. Was Cody right? Would Sean really do something like that? It seemed farfetched to me, but I didn't want to take any chances. I had to get over there. I HAD to! My happy relationship, my entire future with the boy of my dreams, depended on it.

I made sure to grab my wallet and stuff, then got ready to leave. My mom gave me the weirdest look as she saw me dressed and ready to go out for the day. "Randy? Are you really still going to this carnival thing of yours?" She asked.

"I'll be fine, Mom. I'm just going to take a few aspirin before I leave, and then I should be fine."

"I don't think you're going to be 'fine', Randy."

But I told her, "It's ok. Really. Trust me, I can't get any sicker than I am right now."

"No. But you might make a bunch of other people's kids sick. I think you should stay home, honey. Get some rest."

But I refused. Flat out refused. And she didn't have the strength or the time to put up too much of an argument. So that was that. Done. And I'm out the front door...deadly disease and all.

I made the trip down the street to Ryan's house and made sure to fix myself up just one last time before ringing the bell. Maybe I'm being too hard on myself. Maybe he won't notice at all.

Ryan answered the door, "You're up awfully early. What's up?" Then his smile faded as he took a closer look at me. "Dude...are you ok?"

So much for the 'not notice' theory.

"Yeah. I'm just a little under the weather." I said, and he nodded, but he still seemed a bit concerned.

"Ok. Well...umm...come on in. Do you want some munchies or something?" He let me into his house, and I could already feel some more sniffles coming on. That's when I noticed Ryan leaning in for a kiss.

"No! Ugh! Don't kiss me! I'm all germy."

But Ryan just grinned at me. "Germy my ass. Give me my morning kiss. Come here. Hehehe!" And he gave me a few quick kisses on my cheeks and one on the lips. I was almost ashamed for not really being at the top of my game today. "I was just chilling out with a few games upstairs. You wanna play?" He was happy to see me. Even looking the way I did, he just hopped up the stairs in front of me...that cute little ass of his bouncing up and down with every step, and he just acted as though everything was normal. He didn't look at me any differently at all. Me? I probably would have run through a brick wall to get away from the kind of pestilence I was bringing into his house.

Ryan's bed was still messy as always, some clothes on his bedroom floor, but it was such an adorable amount of clutter. Never overdone. It was cute to me how he was able to maintain that balance. We both sat on his bed and he handed me a game controller to welcome me into the next game. And before I could stop him, he giggled and kissed me again. "What are you doing? Quit it!" I said.

But Ryan just lightly rubbed his nose against the side of my cheek and whispered, "I love you."

I sighed to myself, a warm rush of trembles running through me as I saw those big hazel eyes staring into mine. His dreamy smile caused me to blush, and it instantly brought an end to the discomfort and insecurity that I had when I first walked through that door.

Then...

Ryan's doorbell rang again.

He seemed a bit confused by the sound of it. He wasn't so shocked by having me come over so early before heading out for the day, but since I was already there, he didn't know who else that could be.

I had an idea...but I was silently praying that I was wrong.

I listened carefully as Ryan hurried down the stairs in his sock feet and opened the front door. And that's when my worst fears were confirmed. I clearly heard Sean's voice downstairs. An entire hour early. Just like Cody said he would be.

And if Cody is right about Sean's intentions...then that means I might just have a fight on my hands.

Already feeling a warm fire burning in my stomach, I listened to both boys as they came upstairs and got closer to the bedroom. I heard Ryan say, "I thought we agreed on leaving around noon. Remember?"

Sean replied, "Noon? Oh man, my mistake. I could have sworn you said eleven, and then we would actually get there at noon. I guess I got that all backwards." Sure he did. The bastard. "So, I'm finally going to get to see your room? That's hot. Hehehe!" That's when Sean walked into the bedroom and saw me sitting there. Staring him right in the eye. "Heyyy...and...Randy's here. Dude...um...what's up?"

"Hey..." I mumbled under my breath. I didn't make even the slightest attempt to appear happy to see him. If anything, I wanted him to see the disgust in my eyes. What would have happened if Cody hadn't called me last night? What would he have tried if Cody hadn't told me about his little 'scheme' here? A whole hour, on this bed, with MY fucking boyfriend! He's lucky that I didn't toss him out of that second story window.

"Are you feeling alright? You look a little...'lesser than' today." Sean said, making sure to leave a huge space between us as he sat on Ryan's bed. "You feeling sick or something?"

"Yes. I'm sick." I kept my eyes on him. I wanted him to know that I knew exactly what he was doing here this early. And you want to know something? I don't think he cared. I honestly think the son of a bitch winked at me while Ryan wasn't looking.

The next twenty to twenty five minutes were some of the most aggravatingly uncomfortable moments of my life. Why was he so shameless about doing this? What the hell is Ryan thinking? The way that he was talking to Sean, it was as if he was completely oblivious to what was obviously going on here. And I hated it! Because Sean always did or said just enough to frustrate me to the point where I wanted to beat the living shit out of him. But Sean was just waiting for that, wasn't he? Anything to get me to react. Anything to further agitate Ryan by not having my unconditional love and trust. Even with the devil himself sitting not more than a few feet away from me.

It bothered me to be so sick. I tried to hold in every cough. Every sniffle. Every sneeze. But my body betrayed me every time, and I found myself reaching for more tissues. Filling up Ryan's tiny trashcan with snotty wads of disease while I tried to keep my head from spinning. Truth be told, I was already tuckered out just from the walk over here. Nothing would be more awesome than going home and climbing back into bed. But that wasn't going to happen. I wasn't about to let this little blond whore move in and take my Ryan away from me. He's sadly mistaken if he thinks I won't literally fall over in the street and DIE in front of everybody before I give my sweetheart up without a fight.

Seeing them laugh...it nearly turned me inside out with envy. It's not that Ryan didn't pay me any attention, because he did. But everything Sean did was new to him. Every little joke, every little gesture...Ryan just seemed so entertained by the whole act. With me, he practically knew every word that I was going to say before I said it. We had been so close for so long...Sean could keep his attention based on his novelty alone. And the more I saw them interact with one another, the more my guts twisted and tightened and tangled themselves up into a series of knots, nearly ready to snap and burst from the stress it caused me to not reach out and choke that boy unconscious.

Why can't he just leave us alone? Why won't he just go away...?

At one point, Ryan stood up from the bed and handed me his controller. "Can you take my next game, babe? I'm gonna run downstairs and warm up some leftovers before Ariel and Ty get here."

"Yeah. Sure." I sulked.

Ryan furrowed his brow ever so slightly. "Are you sure you're feeling up to going out with us today? You don't look so hot." He said the words with genuine care and concern, but the way I took it...nothing could have hurt me more.

"I'm going. I told you...I'm fine." I mumbled.

Sean said, "I don't know, Randy. I mean, if you're sick, maybe you should get better first. We've still got the rest of the week. Maybe you can join us on a different day..."

Before he finished, I interrupted him and said, "I'm going. I'm going today. If that's ok with you." I couldn't help but to let a bit of venom lace my tone of voice, but I held back enough to keep Ryan from feeling the need to tell me to play nice.

It was then that Ryan leaned in and gave me a little kiss on the cheek. "I'll be right back. Ok? Do you need anything?" I told him I was fine, and he left to rush downstairs to get a snack.

I hadn't really planned to say anything at all to Sean until Ryan got back. Actually, I hadn't planned to say much to him for the rest of the day. The fact that he had the nerve to try to get here before me so he'd have time to flirt with my boyfriend is just downright despicable. Yeah, I had no respect for him at all. And I didn't even want to put the words together to tell him that much.

But Sean...always rubbing salt in the wound...

"That Ryan...hehehe! He's really something, isn't he?" I didn't answer, but Sean kept pressing. "I mean...he's sweet as can be. He's romantic, he's passionate, he's funny, he's intelligent and thoughtful....and GOD is he ever cute! I mean, he's super hot. That boy is something right out of Heaven." Just tune him out, Randy. He doesn't even matter. Just play the game until Ryan comes back. "You're super lucky, Randy. I mean that. Your boyfriend is quite a catch."

Getting fed up with him trying to 'bait' me, I simply said, "Yeah. I am lucky. *MY* boyfriend is definitely a catch. I'll agree to that." I told him, "Gee, you know...maybe if you keep hopping from one cute boy to another like you have been lately, maybe you'll find a boy of your own just like him." He knew what I was getting at, and I'm glad. The lines had been drawn, and the message had been sent. He can like it, or not like it. I don't really care anymore.

That's when Sean's lips spread in a wicked smirk, and he said, "Yeah. I'm hoping to get myself a boy exactly like that, actually. I'd ask you to wish me luck, but I doubt it'll be long."

We stared at one another, and I swear that I could have kicked his teeth in right then and there...but I heard Ryan's footsteps coming back up the stairs again.

"Who wants brownies?" He grinned, tossing out a few small packages that he got from on top of the fridge. "What? What's going on up here?" He asked.

"Nothing." Sean told him.

"Nada." I said.

Ryan seemed a bit confused by our silence, but didn't question the obvious tension in the room. He just sat between us on the bed and went back to playing the game. Sean was playing with him at the time, but I didn't mind. Because I needed time to think. To formulate some kind of a game plan. Hopefully, Cody will be able to teach me more about what to look for. He's already foiled one of his plans. What else do I need to know to save my relationship from certain ruin?

Ryan asked, "Where the heck are Tyler and Ariel? It's almost 12:20 already. He only lives down the street."

"Do you want me to call?" I asked.

Ryan said, "We'll give them five more minutes, then maybe we'll just go over there instead. Ariel might have been running late or something..."

But soon, we heard the doorbell once again, and our last two companions for the day had arrived. Ryan brought Ariel and Tyler into the room, and it started to feel a bit crowded in there. Sweet little Ariel came over to me and handed me a Tupperware bowl. "My Gramms made you some chicken noodle soup. She said it's good for a cold. It's got antioxidants in it or something."

"Awwww, Ariel...thank you! Thank her for me. That's so unreal." I said.

"You have to warm it up, of course..." He said. I noticed him turning a bright red, and when Ryan asked what had taken them so long, his face began to glow like a stoplight. "Nothing." He said.

Ryan asked, "Nothing? Nothing what? What do you mean?"

Lost for words, Ariel clamped his mouth shut and Tyler stepped in, "It was me. I totally overslept this morning. So I had to fix myself up a bit before going outside."

Sean smirked, "I can't imagine it's too hard for you to look presentable."

I don't think Ariel liked that too much. And it felt good to have somebody on my side that hated Sean's inappropriate flirting as much as I did. Maybe Ariel can hold him while I use a rusty razor to cut up that pretty face of his.

I kept kind of looking over at Ariel, and I noticed that he made a point of avoiding me. He kept his head down, his dark locks flopping down into his eyes to hide them from my gaze. I raised an eyebrow, and he bashfully squirmed around in his own skin for a moment, and stepped away from me to make sure that I couldn't ask him what was going on. Hehehe, exactly what were those two up to? I saw Ariel and Tyler make eye contact briefly, and a subtle smile broke out on their faces as they held back a fit of boyish giggles.

Yeah...I don't think I'm buying Tyler's 'overslept' story as much as he might like me to.

Ryan told me that I could keep Ariel's Gramm's soup in his fridge until the end of the day. He was ready to go, and he had his dad's car to drive us over. So away we went.

Can you believe that Sean tried to call shotgun? I could have gotten angry about it, but Ryan was quick to tell him, "Sorry, dude. If I'm riding up front, my baby's riding up front with me. Those are the rules." HA! See? MY boyfriend! MINE! Keep your slutty seduction to yourself, you asshole!

I made sure to give Sean a big smile as I walked up to the passenger side and got in. True love actually counts for something around here, buddy. And what made me smile even wider was watching Sean crawl into the backseat...and watching Ariel practically knock poor Tyler over to make sure he slid right into the middle of the backseat. He wasn't about to let Sean sit beside his favorite boy. Hehehe, Ariel may be shy, but he definitely knows how to protect his emotional investment. Let's just hope he doesn't end up 'bopping' Sean on the head before the day is over.

Driving out to the carnival was a quick ride, and even though it was pretty early in the day, it was already full. Gaming booths were set up, a few big rides had been positioned all around the lot, with a pretty big ferris wheel in the middle. The smell of ballpark hot dogs, cotton candy, and the sweet sugar coated Churros, filled the air. An accomplice to the top 40 music that was being pumped through the many speakers around the place. I might have been sick, but there was something about the atmosphere of the place just lifted my spirits. How can anybody feel bad in a place like this?

And...waiting at the front ticket booth...was Cody. A sight for sore eyes, believe me.

I think Ryan and Sean were both kind of surprised to see him there waiting. The first thing that Ryan did was look over at me to see what the deal was. I told him, "I invited him to come along. I thought it might be fun."

I stood my ground, but Ryan was well aware of the fact that Sean and Cody don't get along. Actually, that's a bit of an understatement. They HATE one another! But that truly tickled me inside. Good. Now Sean's afternoon can be just as miserable as he was hoping mine would be.

"It's about time. It took you forever." Cody said as we all approached. "God, I've got to tell you...this place looks lame already."

"Awww, what are you talking about? This place is awesome. You'll see." I said, greeting Cody with a half hug.

"It looks like a hillbilly tailgate party at Wal-Mart..." Cody said with a strange look.

"Low expectations. That's a good thing." I told him. "You can't help but to be impressed if you go in with low expectations. Right?"

"I suppose. If you want to be an optimist about it." Cody took one glance at me and said, "You look like shit, by the way. You should have stayed home."

"Yeah, thanks..." Hehehe, I wasn't going to let his biting remarks get to me today. I knew that Cody was a total sweetheart. I don't know why he bothers trying to fool me into thinking that he's not.

So there we were...the six of us. Maybe with my secret weapon at my side, I've got a fighting chance.

I saw Sean walk closer to Cody, probably trying to get under his skin too, and he said, "Say, Cody...you think you can spot me twenty bucks today? I'll pay you back right after break. Promise."

Without looking at him, Cody said in a mocking, childish, voice, "Sure, Father Flannigan! I'll let you babysit my little boy at your house for the weekend!"

"Huh?"

"FUCK YOU!!!" Cody shouted it so loud and so quickly that it caused Sean to flinch from the impact! And Cody just kept walking so he could go and buy his tickets and the booth ahead of us.

Ariel suddenly covered his ears with both hands, and I heard Tyler snicker under his breath. Even Ryan, Sean's number one cheerleader in all of this, couldn't help but to laugh out loud once his eyes met mine! Hahaha!

I love you, Cody! This day may turn out to be a good time after all...