-Closed- I should know that your no good for me

[Jenny]

[/i] blasted from her speakers. She squealed, waking up from sleeping. Tangled in her blankets, Natalie tried to get up, but ended up rolling onto the floor. She huffed as she pushed her blonde hair and looked at her dad who smiled and turned her stereo off. Natalie sighed and looked at the time. 11:00 PM. She looked over at her father and frowned at him. "Hunny, you can't just sleep the day away. Go out and explore," her father told her as he picked her blanket up off the floor.

Natalie groaned and reluctantly got off the ground. "We got here yesterday," she told her father as she walked over to her closet. She was extremely tiered and actually planned on staying in bed all day. She opened up her closet doors. After arriving first thing in the morning yesterday, they unpacked everything the whole day in the extreme heat. As much as she loved American, moving in with her so-called 'mommy dearest' wasn't anything she was willing to do.

She shook her head to herself, going through all the clothes in her closet. "Your going to love it here, Natalie," he father spoke before walking out of the room and politely closing the door behind him. For Natalie, it was hard not resent her parents at the moment. Her mother deserted her husband and new born daughter and now her father made her move in with that woman? No, Natalie wasn't anywhere near ecstatic at the moment.

Natalie pulled a pair of jean shorts and a tank top out of her closet. She was pretty sure thats what most Californian girls wore. She had seen the movies, so she hoped to fit in. But she was sure she'd stand out either way. She quickly changed into the clothes and grabbed a pair of plain black flip flops out of her closet and slipped them on.

She quickly made her bed and cleared her room so it was perfectly clean. She hated living in a dirty room. She put some money in her pockets and grabbed the map of Rosewood she had been given, off of her desk and walked out of her room. She walked down the steps and past her parents. When she walked past she ignored when they tried to talk to her and just walked out the door. She knew she'd have to learn to drive so she could get a car. But for now, walking was better than staying in her house.

She walked down the sidewalk for a while, absently looking around and taking in her surroundings. She could feel her cell phone, money and keys in her pocket as she walked. She smiled a bit. She was just glad to be out of that house, it made her in a better mood already. Once she entered the park she put the map up to her face for a moment, looking at where she was on the map. After she found exactly where she was, she lowered the map from her face and looked around.

[/ul]

[Myranda]

"What about her?" Craig MacNamara pointed discreetly to a blonde girl in shorts and a tank top, holding a map like she was new here or something. He eyed the girl; with her long, blonde hair and even longer legs. He pressed his lips together in an impressed frown; Rosewood girls were awesome. "Yeah, she's cute." Desiree Goncalves nodded, bored with the lack of conversation Craig was providing. "She's hot." He said, hiding behind sunglasses as he stared.

The two friends were under a tree; Dezzy was lying there, squinting an eye up at the cracks of sun she could see through the leaves. Craig was sitting, leaning against the tree as he absent mindedly checked the poor girl out. Dezzy scoffed, "If you think she's so hot, then go ask her out." She rolled her eyes at the look Craig shot her. The two were close friends- maybe even besties. Some people wonder why they've never hooked up; others are positive they've been secretly dating all this time. But the truth was that they just enjoyed each other's company. "Or better yet, just walk up and kiss her right on the mouth. Nothing lets a girl know how you feel about her like a spontaneous kiss on the mouth." Craig raised an eyebrow. "Dare me?"

Dezzy sat up on her elbows, shaking the hair out of her face. "Ten bucks says you won't." She said, returning his quizzical brow with one of her own. They stared each other down for a bit, before Craig finally spoke. "A'ight." He said. "You got yourself a bet." Craig had always been the type of guy to take a bet rather than leave it- despite the level of ridiculousness it may have held.

"Rules;" Dezzy said sharply, still looking him in the eye. "You can't tell her afterwards that it was a bet, and you have to make it... Passionate." She laughed a little, knowing full well she was about to lose ten bucks. "Done." Craig responded, jumping to his feet. His lightly stubbled chin was the epitamy of his rugged good looks. But what really drew women to him was his scent; a mixture of cologne and clove smoke. He smelled like a George Clooney wannabe- but, hey! The ladies loved it.

He walked- no, strutted up towards this girl quickly. He hoped to catch her off guard with the action and then quickly run away before he got slapped in the face. Or worse, punched in the penis. When he was about three feet away from her he avoided making eye contact with the girl. Instead, he turned his head to the side and ran his fingertips over his stubble. Whrn the distance was right, he put the dare into action.

In a sense, he left his own body and let his alter ego take charge. At least it was less embarrassing to think of it that way. He grabbed the girl by the waist and pulled her close to him so there was little space between their bodies, and pressed his lips firmly up against hers. Then he pulled back and made an attempt to remove his arm, all the while hearing Dezzy's obnoxious laughter in the background.

[Jenny]

[/i] she thought to herself. "Pardon?" It slipped out of her mouth, french accent and all. She truly had no clue what to say.
[/ul]

[Myranda]

Dezzy had to hold her sides to keep them from bursting she was laughing so hard. She couldn't believe she had just made him do that! With an aching waist, she reached into her front pocket and pulled out a clump of money and found a ten dollar bill. Still giggling, she stood and started to walk towards them. Dezzy made most of her money through bets- she was a gambling addict. She loved the laughs, and the fact that she could get paid to look ridiculous. Not to mention, she was highly competitive. One time, she and her brother bet who could eat healthy for the longest. Let's just say that two weeks alone Dezzy lost fifteen pounfds (given that she used to be a little chubby).

Craig, on the other hand, was not laughing. He was actually very embarrassed. He considered, in that split second they looked in each other's eyes, apologizing to her. But, being the coward he was, he just released her and turned away from her quickly. After the bets were always the worst. It's the time when Craig think, Why the hell did I do that? And then it hits him- because he's too damn proud to lose a bet.

But that wasn't the only thing that hit him. As he turned away from the girl so harply he ran straight into Dezzy, who was stil in her fit of giggles as she bounced backwards slightly and handed him the ten sollar bill. He slipped it in his pocket casually, now fully convinced that nothing could be more embarrassing right now.

[Jenny]

[/i] That was her immediate thought as she looked down at her map which had dropped on the ground when Craig had kissed her. She stepped over the map and quickly walked away, still hearing his friend laughing in the distance.

Seth sat on a bench, watching it all unfold from a distance. His soccer practice ended and hour ago and he had gone home, taken a shower and drove around. When he had seen Dezzy he had stopped. He had to admit he had a crush on her, but no one but himself knew. He liked to see her. She was stunning, gorgeous. Everything he didn't deserve. But seeing her hand her friend the money made him a bit mad.

He knew Natalie was the foreigner. There were actually two of them this year and he sighed, not able to just watch the rudeness go by. As unwilling as he was, he forced himself to go and talk to them. He approached the two and looked at Craig. "Just so you know, the girl you just freak out is new. Straight for Paris, France," he informed Dezzy's friend as he picked up Natalie's map.[/ul]

[Myranda]

Brb- dinner

[Myranda]

Craig ignored the boy and passed him, jogging to catch up to the girl. He felt guilt like really bad heartburn, even thoughhe really didn't do anything wrong. "Hey!" He said, catching up with her. "That was really rude. Of both of us." He said, hoping for a chance of forgiveness. Dezzy thought she was funny, and Craig thought she was funny up until he embarrassed himself and hurt someone's feelings.

Dezzy stood there, looking confused at the girl and Seth. She thought the girl was overreacting- did she not know how to have fun? Even if she was foreign, she shouldn't storm off after a joke. Any other girl would have laughed, or even kissed Craig back to add to the joke. These things happened all the time. "Is she, like... Your girlfriend or something?" Dezzy asked, still confused.

It was weird; she'd seen Seth around, and she knew his name. But that was it. Everybody knew Seth- he was a soccer jock. Coaches praised him, and every girl swooned over his bright blue eyes and swoopy black hair. He had just never struck Dezzy as the kind of guy she could crush on. Besides, the way he's just stuck up for that girl made it sound a little like he had a thing for her. Even if Dezzy wanted to crush on him, he was taken.

"Sorry," she said, pressing her lips together in a sympathetic smile. "I didn't mean to offend you or her, it was just a joke." She said, with a shrug. She was hoping she wouldn't have to roll her eyes at this guy because he still thought she was a jerk. She'd much prefer him to shake it off. Actually, she wished he'd never even scolded her for it. She felt like a child.

[Jenny]

[Myranda]

"Je l'expliquerai á vous alors." (I'll explain it to you then.) Craig responded, having taken French for the past five years. "Je suis désolé." (I'm sorry). He continued to walk next to her, to catch her attention. As if speaking her language wasn't enough for her. He really did feel bad and hoped she'd forgive him.

"She understood what was going on." Dezzy said. It wasn't like they were picking on her, and she didn't appreciate the way this kid was talking to her. She raised an eyebrow. "I'm not a bully. It was just a joke." And she got butthurt and stormed off. That really was not Dezzy's problem. Now, she knew when she made a mistake and should apologize, but now was not one of those times. It was a bet made between two friends, nothing more.

[Myranda]

Wow. Sorry for that suckish post. Next one will be better

[Jenny]

[Myranda]

"I know," Craig agreed, feeling a tugging in his chest. He needed a smoke to settle down, but now wasn't the time. "It was really dumb. I shouldn't have taken the bet." He rolled his eyes and shook the hair out of his face, looking into her own eyes as he searched for any hint of acceptance. He would have even taken the slightest sense of a sympathetic smile as forgiveness.

Dezzy furrowed her eyebrows at him. "You're sure one to scold me for something you weren't even a part of." She snapped, ticked off that he was still scolding her. Even though she was pretty sure it was obvious how old she was, and the fact that she coud take care of herself. If he didn't find it funny, he should have left. Not be a dick and try to make her feel bad about her own joke.

She already had gotten a bad taste in her mouth about this boy. She considered keeping up the whole made bit, but decided it took up too much energy, so she just shrugged. "Whatever." She said, over it and ready to move on. Only, her buddy had ditched her for the butt-hurt new girl. She sighed, not knowing how she should respond to such a situation. Walking away from Seth would make her look like an even bigger asshole, but staying there would create the illusion that she wanted to be there.

[Jenny]

[Myranda]

"Text." = Speaking French, not English. :]

Craig found his slightest hint at forgiveness, even though it wasn't slight but rather blunt. "How can I make it up to you?" He asked, speaking her native language in hopes she'd be more comfortable with that. "Coffee? Tea? Some... Delicious cookies?" He flashed his smile for the first time at her, confident that the bridge had been mended.

If she'd allow him to take her out for coffee and cookies, this day would be complete. As shamed as he was by it, Craig would admit to anyone that he thoroughly enjoyed kissing the girl. Not to mention, he'd just made ten bucks that had 'coffee shop' written all over it. Who knows? Maybe this bet wasn't such a bad thing after all.

Dezzy's eyes narrowed, and she puffed her lips out a little. She wanted to scream at him that he didn't know her; she didn't make dangerous bets, and that it was just a damn kiss, for Heaven's sake. But she just gave a small smile and said, "Okay." Letting it go was the easiest possible solution; she wasn't in the mood to put up a fight. Besides, he needed to figure out on his own that a guy like him couldn't teach a girl like Dezzy anything other than how to play sports. 'Life lessons' came in abundance from her own family- she didn't need anyone else trying to enlighten her.

Dezzy learned from experience and experience only. There was simply no way a bet on a kiss was going to hurt anyone too badly. As said before, it was just a joke. If by some freak accident the kissing bet had led to a bomb going off and killing all of Russia, maybe then she'd be convinced never to make bets again. But all that happened was a girl was freaked out. Sheesh. The world needed to lighten up.

[Jenny]

[/i] she told him, looking up at him as she did so. Slowed down her walking a bit so she wasn't walking super fast.

Natalie looked around a bit, letting him lead the way, considering she had no clue where she was going. At that moment she realized she was going somewhere with not only a guy who bet on her, but she didn't even know his name. "I'm Natalie," she told him.

Seth sighed and looked at her. He took a few steps closer. "Listen, I know I don't know you all the well and that I pretty much just lectured you, but wanna go get something to eat?" he asked her. He liked her to much to push her all the way from him and he knew he had to try and keep her close.

He wanted her closer than just a friend. But at the moment, he was happy with them just being friends. It could always progress into more. And he really did want it to progress into something more. It was in his dreams the nights he wasn't on drugs as he fell asleep.[/ul]