The Challenge: CHAPTER ONEGOOOOOOOD MORNING, LOS Angeles!! It's time for your morning info with Shawn Mac on 91.9 FM Beat Radio! It's going to be another hot day out there, so shorts are recommended. There should be some relief this afternoon because of an anticipated breeze. Traffic is flowing well for all you students going off to school this morning. According to our Eye-in-the-Sky reporter, highways and major roads are moving as usual, so expect to leave at your normal times. Coming up next, Deanna's "Help Me," after these messages...CHAPTER TWO"SAVE ME!" I said, throwing my arms around Lena, and hiding behind her.CHAPTER THREE A WEEK LATER...CHAPTER FOURIT TURNED OUT that I didn't have to tell Henry; by the time the weekend was over and Monday came, half the school knew about David and Lauren's make-out session at the club. It was weird, but almost everywhere I went, people were whispering. I hated it! I didn't know if they were talking about me or not, but it annoyed the hell out of me. To top it off, Henry blamed me for what happened. I have no clue why, but he came stomping up to me and said it was essentially my fault. When I demanded an answer, he didn't give me one, but just walked away.CHAPTER FIVEI WAS SITTING at the kitchen table the next morning, staring at the clock on the stove. Henry and I had spent from three o'clock to nine o'clock talking about what we were going to do, how we were going to act. Then Megan came home and he left. I called Lukas and Lena, telling them I didn't need a ride to school the next day, much to Lena's chagrin. Then, I went to bed shortly after deciding on my outfit for the following day.CHAPTER SIXTHE LAST BELL rang and everyone ran to their lockers. The gang and I grabbed our stuff and met out to the parking lot. Seeing as how Lukas and James were the only ones in the group who had cars, a few of them came with Henry and me in his car. Sam laughed as Henry, whether on purpose or just to joke around, tried showing me how to drive. She had told me earlier that she loved his accent.CHAPTER SEVENTHE PARTY ENDED around one in the morning. I found myself calling the cab company to send a few cabs, but made sure people could pay first. I was glad to find that David and Lauren were already gone.CHAPTER EIGHTSUNDAY WAS FAIRLY uneventful. I sat around the house all day in my pajamas, not feeling like doing anything. Part of me thought about calling Henry, but I decided against it and hung up the phone. I'm not his girlfriend. I'm his pretend girlfriend who's going to become his pretend former girlfriend once his real girlfriend finally comes around. That thought hurt. I started wondering if I was losing my mind after pretend dating this guy for only two days.CHAPTER NINEI LOOKED AT Henry and smiled. He was nervous, although he was hiding it. It was just over a week of being his fake girlfriend and I could already tell how he felt just by looking at him. I was surprised early today when we were in my room singing the karaoke song. He was a decent singer, thank God!CHAPTER TENI STARED AT Uncle Ethan in disbelief. I knew he liked to plan things at the last minute, so it came as a surprise when he was talking about the weekend and it was only Tuesday night. He had been home when I got home, so I couldn't really spend any time with Henry.CHAPTER ELEVENI RETURNED FROM my grandma's later than expected, so I didn't get to see anyone Sunday night. Henry called to tell me that he wouldn't be able to pick me up in the morning and said that Lukas and Lena would do it.CHAPTER TWELVEAFTER WHAT HAPPENED on Friday, it seemed like things spun into reverse. Sure, Henry and I still hung around each other, but it seemed as if we went from the "hot couple" to "really close friends". It wouldn't have been so bad, if it wasn't for the fact that everyone noticed, especially when I was in the library on Wednesday, alone, and David sat down across the table from me. I stared at him, hoping my glare would make him go away.CHAPTER THIRTEENBY THE TIME Henry showed up, I was ready. Instead of the corset I wore last time, I went with a dark red shirt that was solid over my chest and see-through in my midriff area. I had been excited all day, but once we were at Henry's car, I went back to being quiet and moody.CHAPTER FOURTEENHENRYCHAPTER FIFTEENKRISCHAPTER SIXTEENI STOOD SPEECHLESS at the spectacle before me. This just wasn't possible. Megan must have also thought it was amusing because I heard her giggle as Henry and Uncle Ethan were walking back to us, laughing as if they were long-time friends or something. I think I felt my heart stop for a second when Henry came and hugged me. At least I was at a hospital if I had a heart attack.CHAPTER SEVENTEENI SAT IN the front seat, earphones in my ears, listening to the band that Henry mentioned he liked, Arctic Monkeys. I felt my phone vibrate against my hip and flipped it open to read Henry's message:CHAPTER EIGHTEENI GRUMBLED AS I walked around my room, shivering, with a towel wrapped around me. I was angry-no, I was livid-with Henry.IT'S AMAZING HOW similar Henry's room in the cottage was to mine. Of course, I didn't have much time to think about it, because as soon as we were in, Henry pinned me to a wall and was kissing deeply. God, why on earth did Lauren drop him for David? I thought to myself. Henry was a sensual and skilled, unlike the clumsy and immature David.I THINK I finally realized the meaning of happiness, not complete happiness, mind you, but a sense of peace. If it wasn't for school, then I would have complete happiness.HENRYKRISI SAT ON the bus-not a city bus, but one of those big, cross-country buses with the onboard toilet-and tried to clear my head. Thank God for Lena; I told her not to, but she gave me money. My plan was to stay away for about three or four weeks. I had written notes to my friends and one for Uncle Ethan and Megan. None of them knew where I was going except for Lena.HENRYHENRYWHEN I OPENED the door, my eyes widened and my jaw dropped. I automatically stepped back and went to close the door, but his hand came out and stopped it.I COULDN'T STAND all that waiting in the dreary hospital and decided to go back to the hotel to wait. We knew the hospital would inform us as soon as Kris was awake. Ethan let me drive his car back to the hotel, with Lena in the passenger seat, so that I could get my car. The two of us walked up to the hotel room Kris had been in. The door was still broken, but the staff were in the process of steam cleaning the carpet and replacing broken items."LENA!" UPON HEARING her name, Lena spun around and was instantly hugged. "What the...?" she muttered. The person hugging her stepped back. "Chelsea! What are you doing here?"KRISOther Books by Aubrey Bailey
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