Except I’d just forced matters with Brian, and now I not only had to explain, but I had to deal with a night of awkwardness in his company, on top of the threat of action from Empire Eighty Eight.

Ahahahaha the upcoming explanation is being turned into a cliffhanger I love it

I avoided looking back to see what she was doing or checking if she was still there.  When Brian asked me if I minded stopping to go shopping before we went to his apartment, I nodded.

Honestly, he could just want an excuse to get off the bus earlier so he can hear Taylor’s explanation. Although on the other hand, that would mean a shorter romantic arm-wrapping time, which he might find nice, if perhaps confusing.

Of course, there’s also the possibility that he just genuinely needs some groceries. :p

I had taken Lisa’s advice, trying to improvise, be more impulsive.

It’s worked, so far… might get trickier when you’re forced to explain it.

Anyway, yeah, one of Taylor’s greatest strengths is how much thought she puts into everything, but in some cases that can be a weakness too. She can benefit from learning to balance it better.

And it’s not like Taylor doesn’t also have talents that lend themselves well to improvisation, either – she’s quick-witted and very resourceful, which are pretty much the key ingredients for a good impulsive ploy.

I had also done as Bitch had suggested.  I’d let Brian know I was interested, kind of.  Not to the extent she’d suggested, but it was something.  Definitely something.

Oh yeah, absolutely.

I imagined it wasn’t so different from that primal sense of satisfaction Bitch had felt when she’d set the dogs on me.

Heh, I suppose the comparison isn’t entirely off the wall.

Except where Bitch had lorded it over me with a smug smile, I didn’t change my expression from the light smile that was already on my face.

Honestly, that might just be even better. It makes it look like you’re treating this as something completely normal.

And hey, it should be.

I gave Sophia a moment’s eye contact and nothing more, before turning to face the front of the bus once more.  She wasn’t worth it, wasn’t worth spoiling this.

:3

VICTORY.

But seriously, I’m looking forward to seeing how she’ll explain this to Brian… I don’t know if she thought that far ahead before doing this.

So, uh, did Sophia see that, or…?

I broke the kiss and looked him in the eyes as I settled back in my seat.  Even before he opened his mouth to say something, I was giving him the smallest shake of my head.  He closed his mouth. 

Heh. Yeah, I don’t blame you for wanting to say something in reaction to that, Brian.

Y’know, maybe Rachel was partially right. If the idea of Taylor as a potential romantic interest hadn’t occurred to Brian before, it presumably will now.

When I looked away, I felt his arm settle around my shoulders.

Playin’ the part.

I looked and didn’t see Sophia at the front of the bus.  When I checked over my shoulder, I found her near the back.  She was staring at me.

“Oh hi, Sophia! How are you? This is Brian, he’s with me.”

I startled when something moved to my left.  It was just the person sitting next to me standing to get off at the next stop, but it made me aware of just how tense I was.  I reached up and touched Brian’s elbow.  When he glanced down, I moved over into the empty seat and pointed to the vacated spot.

This sounds like it would make Taylor more visible to Sophia.

He smiled and sat down beside me.

My pulse was pounding in my throat, and I couldn’t tell him why, not here.

Afraid of eavesdroppers? Although I suppose Sophia hearing it is a risk.

I waited and tried to organize my thoughts, as people from the front of the bus moved toward the back.  It took some doing, but I avoided looking at Sophia.

I reached up and put a hand on his shoulder, used it to rise high enough to murmur in his ear, “Do me a megahuge favor?  I’ll explain after.”

Ten hours later, in Siberia: “It might be time for that explanation, Taylor.”

Or maybe not.  Maybe he would’ve liked the attention from a girl that looked like her.

Bleh.

It’s getting to her.

She still hadn’t seen me.  I could see why – I was sitting, and she and Brian were standing, and there were others between us, obscuring her line of sight to me.

Ah, right, I forgot about that arrangement.

An arrangement that is perfect for Sophia to only see Taylor once she actually approaches Brian.

Heh, I can’t help but imagine Sophia coming over to hit on the hot guy she saw on the bus… and then she sees Taylor sitting next to him, doing a little wave with a smug expression to rival Lisa, and saying, “Oh hi, Sophia. How are you? This is Brian, he’s with me.”

It’s not at all likely to happen, especially given Taylor’s lack of confidence that Brian would pick her over Sophia, but it’s a fun mental image.

She was oblivious to the attention and to my existence, preoccupied with a conversation over the phone.  She looked annoyed, bored, and distracted, as the person on the other end did most of the talking.  Probably a parent.

Okay, good, this might give you some time to make yourself less recognizable at a glance.

The bus continued on its route, more people filed in, and the people near the front moved further back.  I stared at her, waiting for the moment she would see me and make eye contact.  I wasn’t sure what she’d do, or what I’d do, but that moment held every iota of my focus.

There’s also the chance that Sophia is only doing the horrible things due to peer pressure and just plain won’t care. That’d imply she’s decent at acting, I suppose.

She was Emma’s best friend.  The person who had shoved me into the locker, back on the day I’d gotten my powers.  On countless occasions, she had pushed and tripped me, often several times a day.

Yeah, no, I don’t think she’s acting.

She’d knocked me down the stairs, when I was near the bottom of the flight, even got others to do similar things.  Given that she’d been suspended after my last meeting with her, I somehow didn’t think she’d walk away without confrontation if she saw me.

Probably not.