Cupid Hates Me ✔

Chapter 28

Chapter 28

"Do I have to?" I whined.

"Yes, you do! Come on, Rebs. For me?" Penelope pouted.

"But Ace is going to be there." And Jake…with Montgomery.

"Oh please, that won't fool me. After that stunt you pulled last week, everyone knows that Ace won't go anywhere near you," said Penelope, and damn, she had a point.

I sighed. Why did she have to be so bossy?

After the sundae-dumping episode, Ace avoided me like the plague, Rachel threw me dirty looks, and somehow the news had spread and everyone knew about it, and I had gained a reputation of one of the 'cool' people or something. Ah, the world works in weird ways.

"Alright," I conceded.

With a delighted whoop, Penelope grabbed my hand, tugged me into my room and threw my closet open.

"Ooh, you have to look pretty tonight!" squealed Penelope.

"Why?" I asked suspiciously. "You're not making me perform…are you?"

She chuckled uncomfortably. "Um…no."

I gave her one of my nastiest glares but she remained unfazed. "Look, Penny, if you make me perform, I'll be making a complete fool out of myself because I am not at all prepared to -"

"Oh, shut your trap, woman. You're not going to perform!"

"Then?" I persisted. I didn't like surprises…especially from sneaky people like Penelope.

"You'll see," was all that the traitor said.

Thus, in half an hour, I found myself standing in the auditorium, highly irritated beside Penelope. The whole way, I'd tried pestering Penelope to tell me what she had in store for me, but her lips were sealed shut. I had a bad feeling about this.

"Lighten up would you? It's nothing bad."

"That's what you always say before something bad happens," I muttered glumly.

"Did you bring the crystal locket?" she asked, ignoring my earlier comment.

I brought out the mysterious crystal orchid locket from my pocket that I'd gotten as a gift on my 18th birthday. I still didn't know who the sender was.

"Why do I need this?" I asked curiously.

"Just wear it and wait for it," she commanded.

"Wait for what?"

Again Penelope ignored me and dragged me through the crowd towards the front of the auditorium where a large stage was set up. Bright colourful lights blinded my eyes and the chatter of people, combined with music blaring from large five-feet-high speakers, deafened my ears.

"Do we have to be so close to the damned speakers?" I shouted to Penelope, partly because of all this noise and also because I was highly annoyed. Whatever the mysterious surprise was, I didn't want it.

"Yes, you do!" Michelle popped out of the crowd and grinned wickedly at me.

"You're in on this too?" I groaned.

"Yep," she nodded. "So is Leon, Kurt and Hayden," she added, pointing to the stage.

It was only then that I noticed the people playing the music on the stage that the audience was dancing to. They were all there. Leon at the mike, Hayden with the drums, Kurt with his pink shoes and…Jake.

They just finished off a song and Leon started talking.

"Well, I know the performers can't wait to show off their talent, but we've got one last special song one of our members wants to do for you before we hand over the stage," he said, and looked towards the lead guitarist. "Jake, the stage is all yours."

Oh my God. Is he going to sing? Since when did he sing? What the hell?

"Thanks Leon," Jake spoke into the mike as Leon went backstage and only Hayden and Kurt stayed behind with their instruments.

I looked baffled towards Michelle and Penelope, but the sneaky buggers simply grinned.

"Well, this song is for a very special person in my life to whom I just couldn't express myself to properly. I hope this song tells her how I feel about her."

I vaguely heard some of the girls in the crowd 'aww-ing' as my heart took off on high speed. As Jake started strumming his guitar, I gasped at the familiar tune. He remembered.

"…I don't believe that anybody feels the way I do about you now,
There are many things that I'd like to say to you, but I don't know how, 
Because maybe you're gonna be the one that saves me, 
Afterall, you're my Wonderwall…"

His voice was the only sound that I heard. His eyes were the only where I looked. The moment was something I just couldn't describe in words. It felt like, that in the whole auditorium full of people, it was only him and me.

But that was before I recognised the person standing directly in front of me.

She had accidentally stepped on my foot, and quickly turned around, apologising profusely.

"Oh, I'm so sorry, Miss Smith. It's a little too crowded in here," said Montgomery.

But I barely heard her words. My eyes were fixed on her hand where something had glinted off in the light.

A ring.

A half-heart shaped ring.

That was the last straw.