[I][B]IllAdvised[/B][/I] --- Friday October 4, 2013 --- Still reeling in the shock of Sam going to the dance with him, Cal didn't notice the dance team and their half time show until it was almost over. Quickly recovering as he tore his eyes away from Sam, he quickly snapped a couple shots of the dance team and their snazzy white masks. "Those masks are kind of creepy. I have to wonder though, how much peripheral vision they have in those things? Like if your buddy beside you missteps do you truly see it?" Cal paused as he looked over to Bryce who was clearly more interested in paying attention to something else. "You don't even know which one of them is Steph, you're clearly just drooling over all of them." Cal quipped with a slight elbow to his friend's ribs. "Don't need to know which one is Steph, I like figuring it out. See by watching the movement of their 'Come Hither' hips and the supple shape of their assets, I can determine which one is the beautiful lady I so seek." Bryce said adopting a brutal English accent. "You couldn't deduce which one Steph was if she was grinding on your lap with that mask on. Besides, how are you ever going to have a chance with her when the only thing you've ever said to her was 'Hey' all sultry before freezing up and just staring awkwardly." "You promised not to mention that again!" Bryce shot back with a quick punch to Cal's upper arm. "It was an off day for me! Even Batman has them man." "Whatever," Cal mumbled as he rubbed his arm before turning his head to where the girl was now standing talking to another familiar face. "Look their number ended and she's down there talking with Roanna. Why don't you go offer to get her a drink or something, I'm sure she's parched after dancing." "Maybe I will!" Bryce retorted with a grin as he stood up. Taking a deep breath, he stuck his thumb in his mouth as he pumped out his chest and flexed his arms. Bryce wasn't exactly a scrawny nerd, he was more broad than Cal but he wasn't an athlete either. That said no one would mistake him for being overweight. What Bryce appeared to be was a lot of potential for a boxer like build, he just loved Doritos and video games too much to bother attempting it. Jumping down a few bleachers, Bryce made a beeline for the gridiron. Looking around the stadium, Cal examined the faces of the other students and even members of the community that were gathered there today. Snapping a few pictures, Cal noticed that the new kid, Thomas Campbell was it, was leaving the stadium. Apparently he didn't care for the game or didn't have much interest in it. Looking down at his camera, he scrolled back through the pictures noting how even the roof tops in the background seemed to draw some focus to themselves. Not enough to distract from the focal point of his pictures but enough to say 'Hey we're here, look at us.' Pausing on one particular picture, Cal zoomed in only to be surprised by the discovery of a person standing on the roof. In subsequent shots she was suddenly gone. Though intrigued, Cal's thoughts immediately brought elsewhere as he remembered Bryce had gone to talk to Steph. Smiling, Cal looked down towards where Bryce should be before catching sight of a familiar golden head. Across the pathway, Cal spotted Sam as she made her way back to where he and previously Bryce had been standing. Smiling, Cal knew Sam thought she got along with Roanna and Steph, or at the very least they were amicable acquaintances, however Cal had a feeling that Roanna especially harbored some sort of ill feelings towards Sam. It was likely that Steph reflected these feelings in support of her friend which could make things interesting. Holding up his camera, Cal played around with the zoom as he snapped a picture of Sam before watching Bryce run towards Steph. Hopping off the bleachers, Bryce landed on the ground with about as much grace as an elephant. Staggering as he took a step forward, he smiled smugly at Sam as she rolled her eyes with a laugh, like Cal she knew of Bryce's crush on the younger girl and his previous failed attempts to 'woo' her. Pausing to catch his breath before he spoke, Bryce gave a quick wave to the pair of girls as Sam walked by. "Don't let this one fool you ladies, he thinks he's as sly as fox, but really he's just a teddy bear." Sam remarked with a wink as she jabbed Bryce on the way by. "Oh and Steph, I really liked your latest piece! Ms. McCalister had it put up outside the art room, the emotion in it was amazing and I loved your use of color." With a quick wave, Sam continued on her wave. "Hope to see you both at the dance tonight!" Bryce forced a grin as Sam antagonized him before he turned to Roanna and Steph to address them himself. "Hey guys, err umm gals? I mean, umm" He paused before attempting to recover himself. "Hey, sup?" Bryce could feel his ears going red and out of the corner of his eye he could tell that Cal was definitely laughing at him from up on the bleachers. "Anyways, I came over here to ask Steph, not that I don't like talking to you Ro, I mean you're always a good conversationalist in math. But umm, Steph has anyone asked you..." Suddenly he froze up, his mind going blank. Steph was looking at him while he searched for the words. "Has anyone ever asked you if that's your natural hair color?" [I]Idiot[/i] Bryce muttered inwardly. "Not that I don't doubt the carpet..." [i]Hardwood[/i] "I mean that's not what I meant..." Shaking his head, Bryce finally spit out the words he was looking for. [i]Kind of...[/i] "I mean, has anyone offered to get you a drink, you must be thirsty after all that ass... dancing. After all that dancing." Bryce said with a smile as he tried to recover himself. [I]Please kill me now, meteor strike, spontaneous combustion, stroke? Anything please![/i] "How's he doing?" Cal looked up to the source of the female voice as Sam sat down beside him. "I think the Titanic fared better against an iceberg." Cal said with a smirk as he showed Sam a zoomed in picture of Bryce's beet red ears. "I take it you didn't give him any help while you were down there?" "Nope!" Sam said innocently as she popped a kernel into her mouth with a satisfied crunch. "He could probably do better anyways. Not that I have anything against Steph, I just feel like putting her and Bryce together would be like dropping a Mentos into Diet Coke. Oh on that note," Sam held out a Cherry Coke towards Cal. "I got you something anyways. Figured you must like the stuff since I rarely see you drinking anything else." "Oh thanks!" Cal said slightly surprised as he scrambled for his wallet. "How much do I owe you?" "Oh don't worry about it! You're picking me up tonight anyways, so consider it gas money or something." Sam said with a giggle as she tossed another piece of popcorn into her mouth. "Yes but that doesn't mean you owe me." Cal replied as he held out a couple dollars towards Sam. "You don't take this now and I might be forced to take you out to dinner before the dance." "Oh my, dinner and dancing! When I can I expect the ring Caleb?" Sam quipped back as she forced a Southern drawl into her speech. "I haven't even introduce you to dear old Daddy yet. "You know me, I'm old fashioned like that." Cal said with a smile as Sam burst out laughing. "You old fashioned?" Sam pointed towards the touch screen device strapped to Cal's wrist. "Last I checked you were always ahead of the curve, at least in technology." She paused as she mockingly scanned his outfit. "Fashion meh... Not so much I'm afraid." "Ouch, that gets me right here." Cal said holding a hand to his chest before Sam suddenly jumped up cheering as the Wraiths scored another touch down. Standing up himself, Cal snapped a couple of rapid shots as he watched Cliff Ryder, the team's quarterback do his little touch down dance. Naturally he had got it in by running the ball, but who could blame him after all; 'No one can catch a Wraith'. The sound of heavy breathing caught Cal's attention as both he and Sam turned around to a red faced Bryce. "I need to leave, I can't take this anymore." He said shaking his head. "Lets get out of here, I fear half the football team might come after me for talking to Steph." "Don't you think you're over reacting a little?" Sam asked with a raised eyebrow as Cal slid his camera away into his bag and walked over to Bryce giving his friend a pat on the back. "Allow me to humor you, I think I got enough pictures anyways for us to leave. Six tonight then Sam?" "You got it Pontiac, don't be late, a girl hates to be kept waiting." Sam replied with a wide grin as Bryce stood up with a grin of his own. "Then how come girls always keep a g..Ooph!" He groaned as Cal delivered a quick elbow to his stomach. Bryce doubled over half wheezing and laughing as Sam rolled her eyes at the two boys. "Come on Sly," Cal said with a groan as Bryce followed after him while Sam waved goodbye to the two boys. Walking out to the parking lot with Bryce tagging behind him, Cal looked around the multitude of cars as he searched for his own. His ears twitched as he caught muffled voices and he turned to see a small group of students attempting to be out of sight as they talked under the bleachers. "Drug deal." Cal muttered as Bryce caught up to him and followed Cal's gaze. "Aw yeah, they're the new guys in town. I heard from a real stoner friend of mine they bought the stuff on a trip down to California and have been slowly selling it off since they got back. Supposedly they're setting up a deal to travel there every weekend now and get this, they sell it cheaper than the Fierros." Bryce said in a hushed voice as he leaned towards Cal slightly. Turning his gaze slightly, Bryce noticed a van by the ongoing deal shaking back and forth. "Man, someone is a lot luckier than us." Bryce said with a laugh as Cal groaned and pulled out his camera, walking over to the vehicle before setting the flash off rapidly as he put the camera against the various windows. Before he had time to laugh about it with Bryce though, a rough yell caught his attention. "Ya filthy narcs!" A rough looking teenager had departed from the group and had made a beeline for Cal and Bryce, the others not following too far behind. "Cough over the camera now and no one gets hurt." The three others behind the leader grinned wickedly as they sized up Cal and Bryce. "We didn't take pictures of you and your posse man!" Bryce said as he stepped forward puffing his chest out. "Why don't you guys go back to your little deal and we'll pretend we didn't..." *CRACK*. Bryce toppled to the ground as the dealer sucker punched him. Cal looked up at the dealer recognizing the man as Luke Bard, resident bully and wannabe gang banger at Kilbride College Academy. Luke wanted nothing more than to drop out of school and join one of the gangs around the city making it quite clear he found them to be the most profitable career in the city. Looking behind Luke, Cal nodded towards Brad Simmons, Luke's personal lackey, the other two with them must have been their prospective customers. "Oh hey Brad," Cal said with a sarcastic wave before turning to Luke. "Should have known your personal butt monkey wouldn't be far behind. So tell me, when you guys shower after gym, which one of you drops the soap." Luke took a step forward, kicking sand at Bryce as he did so, but Cal continued to mock the larger teen. "I'm willing to bet it's you Luke, I know, I know, you want everyone to believe that it's Brad but it's so clear to me that being dominant in public must be exhausting for you so sometimes it must be nice to be the bi..." Cal groaned as Luke buried his fist into Cal's stomach before pushing Cal backwards onto the ground. "You think you're so clever Fitzroy, maybe you even think you're funny. But at the end of the day, you're nothing but a little nerd who can't fight his own battles. Where's your cop friend now? Ain't nobody going to save you here, just you and m..." *BTZAP*. The loud crackle of electricity filled the air as Cal brushed himself off. Flicking the tazer in his hand off, Cal looked down at Luke as he flopped around on the pavement like a fish out of water. Looking up at Brad, Cal smiled through a grimace as he pointed to the body. "If you're lucky, he might vibrate for you tonight." Extending a hand, Cal helped Bryce up as the other teen placed a hand on his aching jaw. "Not a good day for you pal, I'm hoping you get lucky tonight." Looking back, Cal watched Brad picked Luke up only for the latter to push him off and flop to the ground again. Their customers meanwhile stood waiting not really sure what to do. "Ugh lets just get out of here. I need ice... and pizza." Bryce groaned as he opened the passenger seat door on Cal's Volvo while Cal himself climbed in the driver's seat and started the vehicle. Backing up, Cal pushed the pedal down as they left the school parking lot swerving into the middle of the road to avoid a car that had parked on the edge of the street. "Why would he park there." Cal muttered as he looked back in his rearview at the driver who was casually staring out the window of the older muscle car. Deciding it wasn't worth his attention at the moment Cal decided to focus on the night ahead and his date with Samantha.