An Arranged Marriage, To Mr. Cocky Over There? [COMPLETED]

One Phone Call

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xx Dipsey

"Ugh you guys, get a room." Sasha moaned. I felt Mark's lips chuckle against mine and I reluctantly pulled myself away from their warmth.

"Jealous much?" I teased her as Mark held my hand and stroked it absentmindedly. We were in the middle of the school's courtyard eating lunch. The only hour of freedom a day we got in this hell hole.

"Definitely not." She replied with a scoff while taking a bite of her sandwich.

"Are we still on for the movies later?" I asked the three of them. Maggie was the one to reply this time.

"Yes of course, I cannot wait for you guys to drag me to a horror movie in which I will probably pee my pants. You guys are the best."

"Don't be such a scaredy cat Maggie." Sasha retorted. "I'll make sure I hold your hand the entire time."

I then noticed Maggie's cheeks heat up in colour. My assumptions of what was going on between them still nagged at my mind.

"C'mon guys, I've been back for almost a month now and I haven't made the cinema yet. You know me well enough to know the first movie I'd want to see is a horror." I told them in desperation. Mark squeezed my hand gently and smiled. I knew how much he detested horrors and the mere fact that he was coming told me just how serious he was about me.

A month of hanging out made me realise how much I had missed his company. He was a complete gentleman and I worshipped that aspect of him, always had. Heck, even my parents were actually warming up to the idea of us. The other night he came over for dinner and my dad and him spent the whole time talking about fishing and how the both of them had to make a fishing trip soon. I knew no matter what I would have always been able to count on him. I leaned forward, just slightly enough that my lips made contact with his cheek.

The bell rang signalling the end of lunch and I groaned in protest. I shoved my half bitten sandwich back into the plastic bag and tossed it into the trashcan close by. I haven't been eating as much and my clothes were starting to fit me looser. I had no clue why I seemed to have lost my appetite.

"Can we ditch last period?" I begged knowing all three of them would say no. After Mark and I ditched last week we both had to suffer through a week's worth of detention. I was sure he wasn't going through that again. Neither was I.

"It's just an hour Kace," Maggie reassured me as if I didn't know that already. That hour passed way too slowly for my liking. I tried to concentrate on the topic being discussed but found myself thinking of other things instead.

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"Babe, I'll just have the popcorn combo," I told Mark as we reached to the top of the concession line of the movie theatre. The guy behind the counter dressed in a red uniform, watched us with a bored expression plastered on his face. It was clear he didn't want to be there working that night.

"With a chocolate bar like usual?" Mark asked me with the biggest smile.

"Wow, you remembered?"

"How can I forget baby." He stated, wrapping his arm around my neck and pulling me close to him so that he could put a kiss on the top of my head.

"I might puke." I heard Sasha's voice say from behind both of us.

I laughed, rolling my eyes. A part of me felt guilty because I wasn't sure if it was genuine affection I was feeling towards Mark or just a game I seemed to be too good at. The guy took Mark's money at sloth speed and assembled two trays. He then took probably an extra half an hour dealing with Maggie and Sasha's order and I swore we missed half the movie by then.

"Finally," Maggie exclaimed exasperated as she took the tray from the guy. She sent him a death glare but he didn't seem to be phased by it in the least.

The movie ended up being a comedy, or at least we spent the entire time laughing at how poorly the production of it was. The acting was terrible. The main character ended up getting killed in the end because she couldn't stand living without the guy who she loved. Who just happened to be the murderer.

We decided to play bowling at the alley next door. It was only nine in the night and even though I knew I had so much work to catch up on, I was grateful for the way to pass time.

"Oh come on!" Maggie protested as her bowling ball ended up in the gutter for the tenth time. Sasha was next to her laughing, the two of them going head to head to see which one was better. Mark and I were further back, sitting on a table nearby.

"Remember the time we came here with your parents and the both of them almost chewed off each other's head cause they didn't want to lose?" Mark asked me and the memory suddenly resurfaced.

"They didn't talk to each other on the entire way home." I admitted with a chuckle. That had to be at least five years ago but the memory felt like it was the other day.

He laughed and then looked back at me. His eyes were searching mine and I could see the vulnerability of them so easily. "I'm so happy you're back in my life Lacey, it was as if a piece of me was missing all along. Don't even leave me again, please."

I bit the inside of my cheek, feeling the walls suddenly pressing in. Mark was confessing too much to me at that moment and I felt like I didn't have the right words to say back. The truth was I had no idea where tomorrow would lead me and I was definitely not going to give him the lie he wanted to hear. My mouth seemed to betray me but I offered him a timid smile, hoping he would make of it whatever he wanted. Suddenly I wanted to leave.

We played three more rounds before I let out one of the biggest yawns I could muster. We were all pooped and all I wanted in that moment was my bed. We headed in the direction of the exit towards the car park where Maggie and Mark parked when my phone suddenly went off. The noise echoed through the empty corridors.

"Wait one second guys my phone's ringing," I paused and tried to fumble through the clutter of my handbag before the ringtone went silent. I looked at the caller ID but it didn't seem to look familiar. I pressed the answer button and put the device to my ear.

"Hello?" I enquired as I attempted to keep up with my friends who were a good ten feet away from me by then. Mark stopped and turned to face me, waiting for me to catch up with them.

There was only the sound of breathing through the receiver and I was about to hang up thinking it was a prank call before an all too familiar voice started to speak.

"Kace."

The world seemed to spin around me.