You go with Bryce and the girls to the mall.

Although you weren't entirely sure you'd fit in with Bryce's jock friends, the prospect of hanging out with Brandi Summers was an opportunity you really didn't want to miss. After all, before there was Miss. Card... before there was even Allison, the one girl you most had a crush on back in your freshman year was Brandi. She was super hot - as were her friends - and even though you and Allison had only broken up three days before, and she was currently dating Brandon Walsh (the very same guy who'd tried to crack onto your ex last year), your overactive teenage libido was still pushing you to go.

Can't really back out now anyway without looking super lame, you though. Bryce having kind of made the decision for you...

And so you went with. Meeting up with a bunch of people, most of whom you recognized, but most of whom didn't recognize you. You didn't really know what they were talking about half the time either - it all being in jokes and football - and so you found yourself standing on the sidelines rather awkwardly, not really knowing what to say. That was until the conversation came back round to Friday's dance and you again became the center of attention. Bryce embellishing the facts rather substantially, trying to make out like Miss. Card came onto the both of you once Coach Mullins had gone. If only they knew, you chuckled silently to yourself. It actually having happened to you a good deal later.

While Brandon still acted like a bit of a douche towards you and Brandi didn't really seem to show any interested at all, surprisingly enough, once Bryce's tale was done, you found yourself chatting away to Lana and another one of her friend's, Gretchen. The two of them actually being alright and not quite as self absorbed or superficial as you'd imagined.

After about an hour or so though, you told Bryce you really had to get back, making the excuse that your parents were still pissed at you and you needed to appease them.

"Alright, bro. Well I guess I'll catch you tomorrow," he said, referring to detention.

And so you returned home, texting Randall on your way about what a surreal afternoon you'd just had. Hanging around with a group of people you'd never even been seen in the same room as under normal circumstance. It being amazing how getting to know Bryce had so quickly expanded your social circle. More so than going out with Allison or hanging with Randall had ever done.

Informing your parents that you'd gone to the mall with some friend's, your mother seemed genuinely happy when you revealed it was someone other than Danny or Chris. Having been pushing for this for a while to befriend other people, wanting you to try and move on from Randall... like that was ever going to happen.

The following day in school, you shared what had happened with Sean over lunch and he seemed rather surprised.

"Seriously? Aren't they all like the super popular crowd? Brandi Summers is head cheerleader isn't she?"

"Yeah. I didn't really talk to her to be honest. Most of them kind gave me a look of "who the hell is this freak", but Bryce is a cool guy. Lana and Gretchen were nice too."

"Gretchen Collins?" he asked, seemingly recognizing the name. "She's in my photography class. She's pretty smoking and seems really nice too."

"Yeah, she was," you agreed, having probably spoken to her for the longest.

"You thinking of making a play for her?"

"What? ...No. There's no way she'd be interested in me," you replied, quickly shooting down the idea. Sure she was really pretty, with long dark hair and a nice set of tits, and you'd enjoyed talking to her, but she was way out of your league. "Besides, I just split up with Allison. I don't think I'm quite ready to jump back in yet..."

When last period was over and Detention reared it's ugly head once more, it was much the same story as before, with both you and Bryce sitting in Randall's classroom, bored out of your minds, pretending to study. You did manage to grab a word with Randall this time though (due to Bryce having to rush home to help his Uncle after it was over), and you spoke with him in great detail about your foray into the world of the popular people.

"They must be letting their standards slip if they're hanging with you," Randall teased, having never had a very high opinion of any of them. "Either that or you've finally become enough of an ass to actually join their ranks. I'm not sure which."

"Yeah, ha ha. Laugh it up. But you're not the one who got to share a milkshake with Amy Addison, Lana Hendricks, Brandi Summers, Gretchen Collins and Deirdre Lane."

"So what?" he said very matter-of-factly. "They're not even that hot."

"Well you would say that now," you told him. Randall's appreciation for girls having somewhat lessened slightly now that he was one himself. "But a couple of months ago, I'm not quite sure you'd agree." In fact you knew he wouldn't. Pretty sure he had a hard on for Brandi just the same as you did back in the 9th grade.

His reply to this however was simply, "A couple of months ago I didn't have the kind of body that made every single one of them look about as hot as Mrs. Naismith!" You crusty old chemistry teacher being at the bottom of any scale of attractiveness.

He was right of course. None of them were in the same league as he was. Mind you, they were all senior high school chicks, he was a busty, mature, thirty year old teacher. It was like comparing apples to oranges in a way.

"Anyway, just be careful," he warned. "Knowing those assholes, they're probably planning some stupid prank or something. Luring you into their clique so that they can humiliate you later."

You highly doubted this. You weren't in a bad teen movie after all, and so far nobody had tried to lure you into anything.

Assuring him that this wasn't the case and that Bryce really was a pretty decent guy, once you got past all the brash, football jock stuff, Randall replied, "Well, the jury's still out on that one. Anyway, who was that I saw you with earlier in the cafeteria? You were eating lunch together."

"Oh, that's Sean - the guy I was telling you about from weight lifting. We've started hanging out a lot more. I was getting kind of bored of the Danny and Chris double act."

"Ah, okay. You guys seemed pretty tight is all."

"Yeah. He's a cool guy," you told him. Joking then, "A sort of Randall 2.0 if you will..."

Laughing at this, telling you that there was "no such thing as a Randall 2.0" and that he was an "honest-to-God original", you chatted about Sean for a little bit longer. Getting the sneaking suspicion from some of his questions and responses that he was perhaps a little bit jealous of your new friend (just as you had been with his). He also informed you that he'd gotten a phone call from your mom last night and that she'd arranged her little get together for this Saturday. Having already okay-ed it with Michelle and Alex. You weren't really surprised by this, but it did of course mean that there would be no going over to his again for the weekend.

"Oh and if you're up for it, I asked her if I could borrow you on Friday after school to help out again with the house. She seemed keen on coming over on the Sunday so we'll really need to get stuck in. You know, actually do some stuff for a change instead of just messing around."

Didn't seem like you had much of a say in the matter anyway, but you agreed, not particularly looking forward to it truth be told. What with having to cram two weekends worth of work into just one afternoon so that your mom didn't get suspicious about what you'd been up to before. It also meant that it would be highly doubtful that you would get a chance to 'mess around' in the other sense - having been **** to get back into bed with Randall ever since last Saturday night. You'd just have to wait it seemed. He was the one calling the shots when it came to sex and you had to accept that, no matter how horny simply being in his presence made you.

The next few days pretty much followed this same pattern. You hung with Sean during the day Met up with Bryce in detention, where you once again had to sit through yet another agonizing hour, usually chatting for a few minutes after. The two of you growing increasingly more friendly as the days went on. On the Thursday you even ran into Gretchen and Lana again, the two of them stopping to acknowledge you in the corridor - something that certainly never would have happened before.

"...You seriously think she's into me?" you asked Sean the very next day, while he walked you to detention. "All she said was "hello" and wanted to know if I'd seen Brandi anywhere."

"True, but she could have gone to anyone to ask that. Plus she was totally giving you the eye."

You certainly hadn't noticed this. Mind you, you weren't really looking. Still... it seemed unlikely. "I don't think so, dude. You're just imagining things."

"Maybe," he said with a smile, "But then again... maybe not."

Jokingly telling him to worry about his own lack of a love life then, you rather playfully jostled with each other as you reached the History department. Rather surprised finding Randall standing outside his door, with his arms folded, seemingly waiting for you...

"Running late are we, Mr. Connors," he asked, glancing first at his watch, then at Sean beside you.

"Uhm... Yeah, sorry," you said. Being only like about four minutes late. Hardly enough reason for him to be standing there. "I had weight lifting class, so I had to get changed first."

"Well come on then, get inside," he instructed. "I'm not waiting all day."

"Sorry, Miss," you apologized, saying goodbye to Sean and telling him that you'd give him a call Saturday (having planned on catching a movie together), before heading inside the classroom to find...