Spinning Circles

Chapter 19

Out of sight, out of mind. Out of sight, out of mind. This was easier to accomplish due to them being in different grades but lunchtime was always going to be a problem. This was the first day of the rest of Rigs' life but he wasn't going to be scared off from the cafeteria by a failed attempt at normalcy. He was standing his ground, he had eaten his lunch at the same table for nearly three years and we wasn't freaking budging not even for her.

Out of the corner of his eye he could see her enter the room. Truthfully he would probably know she was nearby from the way he body started buzzing at her proximity. He refused stubbornly to look in her direction. He wouldn't give her the satisfaction of knowing that he was finding it harder to move on that he had imagined.

Rigs talked with Street about random football games and how Street had performed on Halo the night before. He tried to drink lots of fluids as the hangover permeating every cell of his body was like frigging torture and the lunch menu wasn't helping. The rumbling, while not a great sensation, was a welcome distraction to the Julie angst. He could be sailing on the sea the way his stomach was roiling back and forth, he could be a sea captain? That sounded good, he could drink lots of whiskey, lift lots of skirts, get some sweet tattoos, be an ocean away from Julie and best of all, and he didn't need to graduate high school. He shook his head, he was going freaking insane. Sea captain, really?

Rigs leaned his head down and focus on the mush of food that lay before him. He started shovelling the grey meat into his mouth quickly so he didn't have to think so much about the troublesome flavour or the rebelling growls in his guts.

"So your girl is here," Street quietly remarked. Rigs didn't stop the shovelling, he didn't give any indication that he had heard his friend at all. My girl humph, whatever.

"She looks pretty sad," Street continued. "In fact she might even be pining for someone I know and love." Rigs grunted and refused to look up. Something hard interrupted his chewing process, probably some gristle, it didn't matter.

"Whoa, she just looked over here bro," Rigs continued to ignore his friend as he was positive that he was being baited into looking up. He grabbed the gristle out of his mouth and placed it on the tray. "She's still looking, one could say she is even staring...wistfully" Street was turning his teasing up to a whole new level of cruel and unusual while using a weird voice. Rigs was sure it was intended as an impression of someone else but in the end it sounded like Pee Wee Herman on crack.

"Just leave it Street. We're done." Street leaned back in his chair and ceased his verbal assault. At that moment something came sailing through the air and popped Rigs in the centre of his forehead. The object rebounded off his head and fell into the remainder of his grey meat. It was a tater tot. What the hell? He looked up and across the cafeteria to see the source of the tot. There in the centre of the room was Julie Taylor wiggling her fingers at him with a smirk on her face. In fact it was like she was doing her best Tim Riggins impression. He had no idea what was going on but he decided to ignore it. As he resumed his chowing down he wondered where she had gotten that killer arm from, she'd be a good choice for Powder Puff later in the year. It had been a fair throw...you know, for a girl, not that he'd ever tell her that.

Bang. Another tater tot hit him square in the chest and although it didn't make a sound, it did bounce off his chest. Was she trying to do his head in? What the hell did she want?

"What? WHAT?" he yelled across the room. The cafeteria fell silent as Rigs, possibly the most non-verbal individual in the school had sounded off across the room. Heads initially turned to him. He had stood up as he yelled, his arms outspread as if his body was asking the question too. Heads then immediately turned to the person he was staring at, Julie Taylor who was looking surprisingly calm for someone who didn't like attention. Rigs heard Street laugh/cough next to him, at least someone was amused. She rose from her chair and faced him. Her face showed some amusement but determination too.

"I like you, you tool," she said across the room and the heads of all persons present swivelled from her to him, like spectators at the tennis. He schooled his face to give no response. She liked him? What did that mean? He wasn't going to make this easy for her, she had made him squirm it was her turn now.

"So?" he wasn't a genius when it came to words, this just proved that.

Julie's face looked puzzled and then pissed as she took in there huge audience. "So Rigs, I want to be your girlfriend, I want what you want you doof!" He heard a gasp sound from the rally girls table. Hope rose in his chest but she was still abusing him so he'd make it harder. If you want The Rigs, you gotta work for The Rigs.

"You took awhile. I might have changed my mind." She recoiled slightly and then righted herself again. Her arms rose to her hips and a determined look set in deeper.

"Have you?" She looked at him hopefully and he felt like an utter bastard.

"Maybe."

"Oh okay, well then I will leave you alone then." She grabbed her bag and went to leave. He scoffed, if that was her trying he was freaking Maria von Trapp.

"Bye," he waved and sat down again not giving her a second glance. Street looked at him in shocked disbelief.

"Rigs, she just offered you herself on a platter and you said no. What the hell is wrong with you?" at that moment a hand slapped something down on the table in front of him. Street and he looked up surprised by the forceful thump. Her face was just inches from his. He looked down at her dainty little hand and saw that the Barney colouring in book was below her hand along with the post-it he had stuck on it. He didn't need to read it to know it said You put colour in my life. I can follow through. Give me a chance. Sure his handwriting looked like chicken scratches but the intent was there.

"I am not offering myself on a platter," Julie shot an angry look at Street who looked bashful in response. People were still interested but they pretended not to be which was something. "Bye? Bye? You try to win me over for weeks and when I finally say yes, you say bye?"

"Well you left me stewing, it's your turn." She looked even more riled up by that.

"It's been two days Rigs," she said disbelievingly.

"Two days to think about what exactly? Yes. No. Yes. No. Yes. No. Choose one already." He didn't mean to sound dismissive or trite but what had she waited for.

"I needed to clear my head and think about everything. Make sure I was making the right choice. I missed you. I want to be around you and not have rally girls pawing at you. I want to make plans too. I want you to come to my recitals, even if you complain the whole time. I want you."

"Why couldn't you say that before?"

"You hurt Matt and you have a shocking track record Rigs. I needed to make sure I had some space from you and then make my decision. Do you still want to be with me?" She asked the final sentence in a quiet and very unsure voice. He heard a noise to his right and saw Street. He was nodding furiously at Rigs. She was looking at him with hope and uncertainty.

"There is one condition," She looked a little shocked.

"Oh o-kay," her face still expressed her fear in this condition.

"You start calling me Tim again. Rigs just sounds wrong coming from you," he smiled at her and she dissolved into laughter.

"Okay Tim, but you have to start calling me Taylor again. Deal?" she saucily asked.

"Deal." He grabbed her face from across the table and leant over to kiss her. She tasted exactly as she remembered and the kiss was sizzling. As they heard the yahoo-ing he drew away, Julie sneaking in a quick peck on the lips as he did so. His stomach gurgled and his face must have reflected something unpleasant as Julie looked at him with apprehension. The grey meat and the remnants of last night's binge must have collided. He felt a surge up his throat and he reached the garbage can just in time to empty his stomach with one giant projectile barf. Here he was possibly the happiest he had ever been and his head was in a garbage can. He felt a circular rubbing sensation on his back and he knew it was Julie.

"So the thought of us being together finally kicked in your upchuck reflex huh?" she asked cheerfully.

"Julie, this really isn't the best time," the bin seemed to distort his voice slightly and she laughed. "And it's most likely the beer last night, not you."

"Ahh well I will tell you what. Once you are done and have rinsed your mouth out three thousand times and downed a packet of mints I'll meet you in the closet." Her hand moved away and he was left to yak in front of the majority of the student body in relative peace.

ooooo

Privacy was nice. Having just snuck into the janitor's closet twenty minutes later he was immediately jumped upon by an extremely toey blonde. Her lips were all over his, tugging at his bottom lip, nipping at his upper. He wrapped his arms securely around her and drew her close, revelling in the sensation of having her with him again. He drew his face away and nuzzled her neck, breathing in her sweet smell and thanking the stars that there was something about him, Tim Riggins that made her want him. He was enough. He was enough for Julie Taylor. His heart swelled and he renewed his attention to her mouth, enjoying the sounds of her breathlessness and moans. Her hands ran down the length of his back and anchored themselves in the back pockets of his jeans. Her body aligned exactly with hers and she giggled.

"So Tim, you and me huh?" she grinned.

"Yep Taylor, just me and you." He said punctuating his sentence with a kiss on the mouth.

"Well you are forgetting someone there Tim," he looked at her askance. "Barney, how could you forgot Barney?" He had to laugh at that.

"I colour good huh?" he asked chuckling.

"Yeah you do, you colour my world." She said leaning in for another kiss. Rigs could no recall being as happy as he was in that moment. He had his girl in his arms and warmth in his chest and he was finally enough.

Author's Note – Okay the story is complete and I hope you all enjoyed it. I ask that if you are someone who has read all along and not reviewed that you do at this point. I would love to hear what people enjoyed and there favourite parts. There will be no epilogue or sequel I am afraid. However I need another project and if you have any ideas please PM me and I just might start running with it. Thanks for all your ongoing support whether reading the chapters, reading and reviewing or updating too. I appreciate it greatly. WhoJ.