It Started with a Dare

30

The dance was in full swing when we got there. You could hear the music from out in the parking lot, and as we got closer to the school, it got louder. "Guys, this is going to be a memory of a lifetime!" Emilee said excitedly.

"I hear that!" I replied.

Excitement filled me as we made our way into the school. We walked in to the gym, which had the lights turned off but had colorful lasers lighting it up. I excitedly slapped Ridge's chest. "Look!" I exclaimed.

He laughed then Emilee grabbed my hand, pulling me into the dancing crowd. Ridge, Marcus, and Xavier stayed back. "Sexy," by Shawn Desman started playing. I loved this song because it was from my favorite movie, Honey.

Emilee and I began to dance, swinging our hips and spinning. I was having fun, and I had only been here for five minutes. When the song ended, Emilee and I found the guys by one of the tables. Well, two of them. Xavier was nowhere to be seen.

"Hey," I said, sitting down beside Ridge. "Where's Xavier?"

"Took off. Said he was going to get air," Marcus said.

"You looked great out there," Ridge said.

Another song came on, "Bad Things," by Machine Gun Kelly and Camilla Cabello. I looked at Emilee. She grabbed Marcus' hand and pulled him onto the dance floor, and I did the same thing to Ridge. Emilee and I danced with Ridge and Marcus, and when the song ended, a slow song came on, "Thinking Out Loud."

"I'm having a good time all ready," I said, wrapping my arms around Ridge's neck as he wrapped his around my waist.

"Good. I'm glad you're having fun."

"I love you," I said.

He kissed me. "I love you, too. A lot more than I love myself," he said.

I smiled and placed my lips to his. He kissed me back immediately, and we stayed like that for a few moments before I pulled away and laid my head on his shoulder. Ridge kissed the top of my head.

"Aww, look at you, two!" Emilee gushed. I looked over at her and rolled my eyes.

The song ended, and Ridge decided to grab something to drink. Marcus went with him, leaving Emilee and I to dance alone. Luckily, it was a fast one. Two more songs later, Emilee and I finally began to get tired. "Look what we have here," a familiar voice said.

Emilee and I stopped. Wren stood with Jared. He had an arm snaked around her waist. "Wren," I said.

"You two look lovely," she said with a fake smile.

I sighed, "Wren, please. Can we just have a nice night? It's a dance for goodness sake."

"You wanna know what they say about dances?" she said.

I crossed my arms. "What?"

"It's where secrets come out," Wren said.

"What are you talking about?" I asked.

"You should ask your boyfriend or Stormy. They both know what I'm talking about," Wren said then walked off.

I looked at Emilee. "What does that mean?" I asked.

"She's just trying to cause trouble," Emilee said. "Forget about it."

"No, I can't forget about it. What does she mean?" I asked.

"There's only one way to find out," Emilee said, and we both made our way out of the crowd. We found Marcus by the table.

"Where's Ridge?" I asked.

Marcus shrugged. "Stormy told Ridge that they needed to talk, and they both left the gym."

I made my way out of the gym, Emilee and Marcus following. One of Stormy's friends, Derek, was by the East Wing hallway. "Derek!" I called. He loomed up and paled when he saw me. "Have you seen Ridge?"

"Uh...uh....n-no," he stuttered.

I crossed my arms. "Derek," I said.

He sighed then pointed down the hall. "Thanks," I said then made my way down the hallway. Voices came from around the corner.

"Wren found out." It was Stormy.

"What do you mean she found out?" It was Ridge.

"Well, she heard us talking the other day. She's going to tell Braelyn," Stormy said.

"Braelyn is not going to find about the dare. I should've never agreed to it," Ridge said firmly.

I rounded the corner. "What dare?" I asked.

Ridge and Stormy looked at me, shocked. "Braelyn, hey. I thought you were in the gym," Ridge said.

"I was, but Wren paid me a visit. She said something to me that made me come find you. What dare, Ridge?" I asked.

Ridge stepped toward me, but I stepped back. "What dare?" I asked.

"Tell her, Ridge," Stormy said.

Ridge sighed and rubbed his face. "Fine. Fine." He looked at me, and he had tears in his eyes. "After I was dared to kiss you and you slapped me, my friends..."

"Your friends did what?" I asked, my heart hammering in my chest.

"They took the dare further."

"What do you mean by that?" I asked. I knew what was coming, but I didn't want to believe it. I wanted to be wrong.

"They dared me to go out with you for a month," Ridge finished.

The tears fell. "And you agreed?" I asked.

"Yeah, but listen," he stepped toward me, closing the gap, and I shoved him.

"No!" I screamed.

"Please. I didn't know that it would go this far. I lo-"

"Don't say that! Do not stand there and tell me that you love me! If you did, you wouldn't have don't this!" The tears fell like rain. "I trusted you! I trusted you not to hurt me! I fell in love with you!"

"And I fell in love with you, too," he said, taking a step toward me.

I slapped him as hard as I could. "I can't believe you! I hate you!" I screamed. Then, I took a deep breath and slipped the ring off of my finger.

I threw it on the ground. "Take your stupid ring back because I don't want it! I don't want to see or talk to you ever again. Have a nice life," I said then turned around. A whole group of people stood, watching.

Wren stood beside Jared with a smirk on her face. Jared looked at me with pity. Emilee and Marcus stood there, stunned. I hurried out to the cafeteria, where I searched for Nathan. I found him with Nina at a table.

I walked over to him. Nina looked at me. "Braelyn, what happened?" she asked, walking over to me.

Nathan whipped his head toward me then hurried over to me. "What happened?" he asked, concern laced in voice.

I shook my head furiously. "Braelyn!" I heard Ridge call. Nathan looked behind me, and his face hardened.

"What did you do?" Nathan yelled then started to stomp over there. 

I placed a hand on his chest. "Take me home," I sobbed. "Please, just take me home."

Nathan looked at me the wrapped an arm around my waist. He looked over his shoulder. "I'm not done with you," he said then lead me outside, tears streaming down my face.