Love, Joy, Heartache and Pain

CHAPTER FIVE

CHAPTER FIVE

As we parked in the school lot, I saw Kylie running towards us. The first thing I noticed was the big black and blue bruise surrounding her left eye. Josh was the first person that came to mind at that moment. I panicked as I saw her making her way towards me, crying her little heart out. Something bad had happened. I told her not to go with him, but her hormones got in the way. The only good thing about our current situation was that only Luke noticed what occurred next. Kylie wiped her tears with both hands and shouted at me. “Kyle! Kyle! He hit me! He hates me!” She wrapped her hands around my neck and broke down into tears again. It was a really peculiar sight since Kylie was a lot bigger than me now.

“What? Who hit you?” She was holding on to me for dear life. Her behavior let me know that she was scared for her life. Pretty soon, the blood flow to my head started to minimize, and the pressure of Kylie’s hold around my neck became a little too overwhelming. Kylie didn’t have the slightest idea how strong she was inside my body. “Kylie! You’re choking me. Let go and talk to me.”

Instantly, she let go and wiped her tears away while hyperventilating at the same time. She looked horrible with tears running down her cheeks, and her hair was a complete mess! “He…hates me! He hit me!”

“What the hell is happening here? Why do you refer to Kylie as Kyle and who the hell hit you?” Luke questioned her while looking at us.

She glared at him, rolling her eyes. “Who invited you, loser? This is between me and Kyle!” She grabbed my hand and pulled me away from him. Her bitchy side was back and her testosterone level was at an all time high. Looking back at Luke, I saw that he looked lost and confused about what just happened in front of him. Kylie messed up big time by calling me Kyle in front of him. I saw him murmur my name to himself while trying to somehow make sense of what had just happened. Kylie dragged my little butt to the football field, underneath the bleachers. It was one of the most secluded spots on campus.

“Kylie! Do you even realize what you just did?” Kylie had her fist curled up and was crying hysterically, but this time it was out of anger and disappointment. “Kylie? What happened?”

“I want my body back!”

“We’ve been through this before, Kylie. If I could, I would be in mine right now. But what the hell happened? Why did you expose us like that?”

“Because Josh hit me!”

That pissed me off. Now she was lying to my face. I knew Josh very well and he would never in a million years hit me or her now. “Liar! Why would Josh hit you?”

Suddenly, her expression changed once again. Her hands became soft and she tried to avoid my gaze while I searched for hers. “I…sort of messed up.”

“Kylie, what the f**k did you do?”

“I…I…he was so sweet, caring and tentative…I just couldn’t help it.” Kylie stammered, still trying not to look at me. Suddenly, she started to shake. Kylie did something to Josh that I would never have done. That’s why the guy hit her, but I needed to know what.

“Kylie, what did you do?” I asked as I held her shoulders calmly.

“I…I…”

“You what, Kylie?” I was trying to be patient with her, but I was beginning to run out of patience. What the hell did she do? “What Kylie?”

“I sort of…kissed him.”

“YOU WHAT!?” I shook her and pushed her to the ground. She fell flat on the floor, looking even more shocked.

“Did you just shove me?” Kylie asked.

“You kissed Josh! Why would you do that!?” I started pacing in front of her while she lay on the floor, staring at me in disbelief. “This can’t be happening! Josh is going to kill me. No, he won’t.” I turned to Kylie who had a slight smile on her worried face. “He’s going to kill you.”

“Me? Why me?”

“Because you kissed him with my lips that’s why!” I yelled.

“I didn’t mean to.” She knelt in front of me, holding her hands in grace.

“How can you not mean to kiss Josh? What the hell happened?” I sat in front of her Indian style, and Kylie fell on her butt again. “Tell me what happened from the moment you left my side.”

Kylie opened her mouth to begin her explanation, but the words would not form. After breathing for a couple of seconds and staring into my serious face, she began her story. “Josh took me to the bleachers for a smoke and it was there that we started a conversation about school, life, and future plans…”

As you would guess, Josh was just being himself as always, and Kylie was drooling over him as always. Josh has always been a different person when Kylie wasn’t around. Something about her agitated or pissed him off. However, that morning, Kylie met the real Josh and fell for him even more. I knew something like that would happen. That’s why I didn’t want her to go with him in the first place! Anyway, while Josh was talking about his future plans, Kylie jumped into his lap and kissed him. Not just kissed him, but tongued him. Of course, Josh freaked out. I mean, what straight guy on earth wouldn’t freak out? And of course, his only response was to hit her in the face, telling her to stay away from him and his p***s. Kylie tried to explain her kiss by telling him the events that took place the night before. She told him that she was Kylie inside my body. He, of course, did not believe anything that she said. To Josh, actions speak louder than words. When he tried to hit her again, Kylie exploded crying and ran to the parking lot where she met us. My mouth hung open for a few seconds as I tried to digest everything. I couldn’t believe what Kylie had just done. Josh must really hate my guts right now, and there was nothing I could do about it. It took me a few seconds to recover from the initial shock, but I did eventually. Kylie was smiling nervously as she waited for my response to her story. “Kyle? You okay?”

“We are so fucked.” I stood.

“Really?” Kylie jumped to her feet as well.

“Yes, you fool! You told Josh that we switched bodies. You even hinted to Luke that we switched bodies as well. You just handed us a one-way ticket to the loony bin! No one is going to believe us!”

“What are we going to do? We’ve got to switch back or Josh will kill me.”

“Yeah, so he can kill me.” I barked at her.

Kylie started crying and stomping her feet. It was her panic dance again.

“Oh my God! You really are Kylie.”

Kylie and I froze on the spot. Her face went pale and she became very stiff and uncomfortable. Someone heard everything. Slowly, we turned to the other side of the bleachers. It was the math geek who sat with us for lunch and the geeky girl from Chemistry class who always sat beside him.

“Yes, she is,” the girl murmured in a nasally voice.

“You two did this to us!” Kylie lifted her fist in the air and ran forward. I pulled her back, and clung to her. She was about to kill them.

“Us? Why would we and how?” the math geek asked.

“Yes, an occurrence like this is scientifically impossible. Switching bodies is more science fiction than a real possibility.”

“Oh don’t act stupid! You’re good with math and s**t. Switch us back or else!”Kylie yelled.

She waved her fist in front of them. The math geek laughed, while Chemistry girl shrugged her shoulders. “We’re telling you the truth. Switching bodies is physically impossible.”

“However,” Chemistry girl added, “Can you tell us exactly what happened last night? Include a detailed description of the events in the process.”

Kylie tried to look at me, but I was still holding her from behind. When she lifted her hands in the air, I knew that she had given up the fight. “I think we can do that.”

“Good,” I answered. After the two little geeks sat in front of us, we told them everything. Their mouths would drop open every now and then as we related to them the events that took place the night before. Their eyes would widen, their eyebrows would arch, or they would simply scratch their heads. By their nodding at the end of our detailed account, I knew they believed us. “So, do you believe us?” I asked.

“Absolutely!” the math geek exclaimed. “Your body expressions and mannerisms stayed the same. Only a fool wouldn’t believe that you two switched bodies.”

“Yes, I believe that the lightning, rain, antenna and television set must have all played a key role in the entire switching process. This would be a scientific breakthrough if we could somehow figure it out,” Chemistry girl added.

“Can you switch us back?” Kylie asked, hopeful.

They glanced at each other and scratched their heads. Both of them turned to us and answered at the same time. “No.”

“Great! I’m going to be like this forever.” Kylie added bursting into another crying fit.

“But we can try,” they said unison. Kylie’s crying quickly stopped.

“Really?” I asked them.

“Yes, we just need to replicate everything that occurred last night. It may not work, but it won’t hurt to try.” I wanted to hug math geek and squeeze him to death.

“Yes! Praise the Lord. When can we do it?” Kylie added, smiling happily.

“Tonight,” Chemistry girl added. “We just need a couple of things.”

“Tonight?” I quickly remembered my date with Luke. I knew I didn’t stand a chance with him, but I still wanted to fulfill my dream of the guy I loved taking me to the dance. It may sound stupid, but there was nothing in the world that I wanted more than spending a night with Luke as his date. “Can we do it tomorrow night instead?”

“Are you out of your f*****g mind? What do you have to do tonight that is more important than switching bodies?!” Kylie exploded.

I gulped. I had to come clean. “The dance…”

“For a stupid dance? You want to go to a stupid dance instead of switching bodies? How could you be so selfish? It’s just a silly dance where…” Kylie froze. At first, she didn’t get it, but soon, she figured it out. “Please, dear Lord, tell me that you did not agree to go to the dance with Luke.”

My throat felt twisted like a knot. Kylie’s face turned boiling red while her eyes zoomed in on me. I was afraid for my life, but she f****d me up big time with Josh. Kylie owed me. “Yes.”

“I told you to be careful with him. I don’t like him.”

Was Kylie being for real? She messed up my life by kissing Josh. She kissed Josh! “Well Kylie, you made out with Josh and on top of that, you don’t have any idea of the hurtful things that Luke said to me.” I couldn’t keep it in anymore. Everything just poured out of me in a fountain of tears. When Kylie saw my tears, she knew that it was serious.

“Kylee Boo, what happened? What did he say to you? I’m going to pound that annoying little son of a b***h into the ground.” She did not waste her time and cradled me in her arms. “What happened, Kylee Boo? You know you can tell me anything.”

I couldn’t find the words to tell her what happened between me and Luke. My heart felt like it had smashed into pieces after listening to his words. Luke clarified to me that there was no chance in hell for something to work between us. Deep inside, I always had that one little tiny drop of hope that maybe, just maybe Luke and I could have something one day. But his words told me otherwise. Luke was as straight as every other guy in the world, and he would never want me. He wanted Kylie, or any girl who had a v****a, as a matter of fact. Slowly, and with tears, I told her everything that had happened during the time we parted. Kylie listened carefully and held me the entire time. Yes, Kylie and I loved fighting with each other, but we sincerely loved each other as well. We had always been there whenever one or the other needed a shoulder to cry on. When Kylie’s grandmother died, I was her shoulder. Whenever those stupid jocks picked on me, Kylie defended me with words and actions. I was her brother from another mother, and vice versa.

“Oh, Kylee Boo, I told you that he was an asshole. I just knew it! Yes, he’s a sensitive and great guy, but an asshole nonetheless.”

“I know, Kylie! He’s a great guy and only you can make him happy.” I detached myself from her, drying my eyes with my arm.

“No, Kyle! I like Josh. He’s a great guy too. I just have to find a way to get close to him as Kylie and we might stand a chance.”

“But, that would mean that Luke would have his heart broken, and I couldn’t live with that, Kylie. I want to see him happy even if it’s not with me.”

“Then, let him find another girl to be happy with.”

“But, he loves you. You know what he said.”

“No. He fell in love with you because we’ve got nothing in common and I would never act towards him the way you did.”

In a strange way, Kylie made sense for once in her life. He physically liked Kylie, but he also liked my personality, individuality and qualities. He liked me for being me. In a bizarre twist of fate, Luke liked both of us. Now, I had no idea what to do. I just wanted Luke to be happy at least one night. “I just want to see him happy. Let him have his night, Kylie…because I know that you’ll never see him as more than just an annoying little asshole.”

“Kyle, why would you expose yourself to more heartache and pain?”

“Because I love him, Kylie! I always have and always will. You know that.”

Kylie let out a loud sigh. “Fine. Let him have his night, but I want you back by twelve, Cinderella.”

I immediately wrapped my arms around her and squeezed her tight. I gently kissed her right cheek. “I love you so much, Kylie Boo.”

“And I love you too, Kylee Boo.”

“So that’s the plan? After twelve?” Chemistry girl asked, drying her eyes.

“Yes,” Kylie answered, extending her hand to her. “I’m Kylie and this is Kyle.”

“I’m Harper and this is Hughes.”

It was nice to finally know their names after sitting with them for almost four years. As incredible as that sounds, we had never bothered to talk to them. They weren’t really ugly looking. Both of them had brown hair and big round glasses. They dressed like our science teacher would, and their faces were covered with pimples. They even had braces! They almost seemed like brother and sister. So, when Kylie asked the following question, I was baffled. “Are you like boyfriend and girlfriend?”

“Oh, no!” Hughes added, smiling. “Just friends.”

“You two should totally date. You make a cute couple.”

“Funny. That’s exactly what we use to say about you two during our freshman year until we found out that Kyle was gay and he had a crush on Luke and you on Josh.”

My heart jolted and did a three sixty. “How did you guys know that?”

“You do know that we have been lunch neighbors for almost four years now. We may have never spoken to you, but we’ve been listening to your chitchat all this time.”

Shenanigans! They were right. Kylie and I had always talked openly without any reservations. Since it was our table, we talked about absolutely everything. I was shocked to hear that those two had been eavesdropping on our conversations all this time. I quickly wondered who else had heard our private conversations.

“So? Tonight at Kyle’s house?” Hughes questioned.

“Yes! Do you guys know where I live?”

“Yes, who doesn’t?” Harper added. She quickly turned to Hughes. “We’ve got to get things ready since we need to replicate a lightning bolt.”

“How can we do that?” he asked her.

“I may have an idea.”

“Okay, it’s settled then,” Kylie told us, standing up. We quickly got to our feet. “Kyle and I will try to survive high school for today, and as soon as the bell rings, we head to my house and then to his house while he goes on his date with Luke.”

My date with Luke…the one and only night I would get to live out my fantasy. It was my once in a lifetime opportunity to date the hottest guy in school, Lucas Edward Johnson.

“Sounds like plan. That will give us enough time to brainstorm.” Hughes smiled.

“Good. Let’s head to third period then, since we unwillingly skipped second period.”

“Awesome.” Harper added smiling.

The four of us slowly made our way back to school. It had been chaotic, but thanks to our new friends, we had a plan in place. We needed to make it through another day at Gelson High. But tonight, I would be dancing inside Luke’s strong arms to the rhythm of relaxing and soothing music. For one night, I was going to be living my dream.