Out To Get Her

22| Couldn't Have Been Better

"THANK YOU," DYLAN grins at his best friend as she places a scoop of chocolate chip in front of him.

She smiles and slides into the booth beside him, soon followed by Dean with vanilla in hand.

Alex shovels spoonfuls of hazelnut into her mouth as soon as Dean's gaze levels onto her.

Talking to him is too weird for words right now, and having ice cream in her mouth is an effective way to cut off any attempts at communication.

Alex is still trying to mentally prepare for Sam's arrival which could happen any moment now. Dean has a girlfriend, and Alex had absolutely no idea until approximately sixty hours ago.

The moment Alex realised that she had a colossal crush on Dean, was the same moment she found out he had a girlfriend. Riley helped by making her night not a total loss, and he was a sufficient distraction for a time, but he could only do so much. Alex still likes Dean, and there's still nothing she can do about it.

"Alex? Could I talk to you outside for a min-"

"Dean! Hey, hi everyone," looking flawless as usual, Sam struts over to the table. It grates on Alex just how perfect she seems.

"Dylan, yeah?" She smiles at him, "And Alicia?"

Alex narrows her eyes a fraction, "Alexis."

She waves her hand, "It's great to meet you."

"You too," Alex tilts the corner of her lips up half heartedly, certain it looks as forced as it feels.

Dean moves over in the booth and Sam slips in beside him. Alex bites her lip.

"So," Dylan starts, "How has everyone's weekend been?"

"Marvelous," Sam smiles charmingly, placing a manicured hand on Dylan's arm and giving it a squeeze, "Couldn't have been better."

"What she said," Dean smiles hesitantly, the tension in his shoulders raising them up. He glances in Alex's direction.

Alex stiffly twirls the spoon in her ice cream, robotically bringing it to her mouth every few seconds. Dean frowns, opening his mouth-

Whatever he was about to say is cut off by Sam's raucous laughter, followed by Dylan's animated voice.

Alex sighs, murmuring that she is headed for the bathroom before escaping from the booth.

She keeps her steps light as she makes her way to the obnoxious pink door, which creaks as she opens it. Slipping inside, her shoulders sag in relief when it shuts behind her. Trudging toward the sinks, she slowly raises her gaze to the long mirror. Eyeing herself between the smudges—someone really needs to wipe them down—she wonders what makes Sam so much better than her. The lack of make up does no favors to the bags under her eyes and frizzy blonde strands of hair stick up at the sides of her face. Grimacing, Alex gathers her hair back,  combing it with her fingers to pull it into a high ponytail with the hair tie on her wrist. Maybe it's the smattering of freckles on the bridge of her nose, or the uneven bump on it. Or the way her double chin makes an appearance when she tilts her head just a little too much. She doubts Sam ever show cases a double chin with that sharp jaw of hers, even at a bad angle. Do people like Samantha Harris even have bad angles?

Splashing cold water from the tap into her face, she shakes her head to clear it. Who cares if Sam looks like a model? Alex should be happy for Dean, instead of brooding and killing his vibe. He deserves to be happy, he's a good person. Alex needs to simply stop being childish and enjoy everyone's smiles.

With that thought in mind, she plasters a smile on her lips and turns to the door. It swings open before she can pull the handle, nearly slamming her in the face.

Jumping back, Alex is met by the flawless, smiling face of Sam.

"Oh hey, sorry, I didn't see you there."

Alex returns the smile warily, "No problem, I was just heading back to the table."

A manicured hand latches onto her elbow, "Wait, stay while I touch up my lip gloss."

Alex shakes her head, motioning to the door, "I really should-"

"I insist," Sam gives her arm a squeeze, her talons digging into the skin. Alex can't decide whether it was intentional or not.

"Um, sure," Alex follows her to the mirror.

Sam grimaces at the state of them and pulls a compact from her purse, holding it up as she dabs at her pink lips.

"Don't you love this color?"

Alex can barely tell the difference between any shade of lipgloss, "It's great. Compliments your complexion." It does actually, Alex knows that much.

Sam grins, a knowing grin, as if she was already aware of that tidbit of information, "Thank you. Would you like to use some?"

Alex shakes her head, "I'm alright, thank you."

Nodding, Sam turns back to her her reflection.

Maybe she is making an attempt at being civil? Alex can be civil with her, her actions at the dance put aside for the sake of maturity and Dean's happiness. Glancing around the smooth tiles of the bathroom, Alex decides that that is what she is going to do, be nice to Sam. She opens her mouth-

Sam's eyes don't stray from her compact as she murmurs, "Do you like Dean, Alexis?"

Alex freezes, her hand hovering by her ear where she was about to tuck a stray strand of hair behind it, mouth still agape, about to ask some dull question like whether Sam watched Pretty Little Liars or not.

She knows, she knows, she knows.

"It's alright if you do, I suppose," Sam continues, oblivious to Alex's panic, or maybe she knows exactly what she is doing, "I just wanted to make sure we were clear about what's going to happen now."

Alex hesitates, heart pounding against her chest, "Um, what's going to happen now?" Alex fights to keep her expression neutral, despite the panic clouding her mind. Sam could tell Dean, Sam could tell Dean, Sam could tell Dean.

"Well," Sam's glossed lips quirk up, as she snaps the compact shut, "You're going to stop throwing yourself at him of course. My understanding is that offering to spread your legs for every guy on the soccer team doesn't mean they'll actually accept. I'm sure Dean doesn't appreciate the desperation you so obviously reek of."

Her hands shake as Alex shoves them into her pockets, "I- I didn't-"

Sam meets her eyes at last, a cool glint sharpening her gaze, it's positively territorial.

"I think we have an understanding here. I'll see you back at the table, or maybe I won't. I doubt Dean will notice your presence, or lack thereof." Winking, Sam slips from the door, leaving Alex gaping after her.

~*~

Alex left shortly after that. Her heart was racing and it horrified her how easily Sam had gotten under her skin. That comment about her throwing herself at Dean as well as the entire soccer team? Completely out of line. But what had Alex said to defend herself? Nothing. Absolutely nothing. And what had Alex done when Sam told her to leave? With her tail between her legs, she had obeyed. It had less to do with Sam's threats and more to do with her utter humiliation though. If Sam realized how she felt about Dean, surely Dean had guessed as well? The thought of that is more mortifying than Alex can bear.

Sam had really caught her off guard today. She hadn't seemed like the type to go for such a direct attack... Anyone can don a mask though, and apparently the picture of niceness Sam is creating in front of Dean is working. Alex has had to learn about masks the hard way, this is a not so gentle reminder of that lesson.

"Alex?"

Her head shoots up. Electric blue eyes meet her own.

"Riley."

~*~

A question in the spirit of getting you guys to be active:

What's the last movie you watched?

The last one I watched is 22 Jump Street :)

If this book reaches 200 votes in total, I will update the next chapter instantly!