Outside is less noisy, no one notices me on the gravel path. Maria’s car is gone. My ride home is gone and I am not with my phone. Emotions clash inside me, tears fight to come out but I push them back.
I don’t need to cry, I need to find a way to get home in one piece. With that in mind, I start walking.
The distance seems to increase the further I walk, my only company is the street lights lining the walkway. The itch worsens, I shiver and sniff as the cold air lashes at me.
This night was a mistake.
The powerful sound of an engine cuts through the air, a motorbike rolls to a stop beside me but I continue walking.
“Why you out here looking like a corpse?” Very funny. I force one foot in front of the other, urging my body to cooperate. I am alone on this street, anything can happen. My heart jumps to my throat as the rider continues at my pace. I refuse to look at him, my eyes focus on the pavement,
Throughout the ride home, we don’t talk. His kiss was unexpected but my reaction shocked us more. I can’t stop thinking about it, replaying it like a broken record. I kissed Ben. What would he rate my kiss? A pathetic two? The wind slaps my hair into my face, fear of falling off the bike doesn’t allow me to push the annoying strands out of my eyes. His body’s warmth chases the cold seeping into my skin, I tighten my arms around his waist as we skip to a new lane. My cheek presses to his solid back, I try and fail to enjoy my second bike ride. He is moving too fast. Without notice, Ben increases his speed. I yelp and my eyes clench shut. His body shakes with laughter. “Relax, Juliet.” My eyes open, I loosen my vice-like grip on his waist. If I didn’t know better, I would think he loved having my tiny body pressed against his. “You only live once. And, you are in safe hands.” His words do nothing to reassure me, I only relax wh
Mum must be waiting for me but that knowledge doesn’t stop me from shutting the front door quietly. The living room lights are off, the stairs are illuminated by the ceiling lights on my bedroom floor. Alert, I tiptoe to the stairs. If I can get into my room, then I’m safe from her questions tonight. That woman doesn’t quit and if I prove too stubborn, she will recruit Dad’s help. As a team, they are harder to resist.“Where do you think you are going?”My boots drop, I scream until the familiar voice settles over me. Laughter echoes behind me, I let out my breath. Shit. The light comes on, I frown at my mum doubled over in laughter beside the switch. It feels like déjà vu but this time, there’s no Asher.Mum strolls towards me to wrap me in a hug and my anger disappears as fast as it came. “You should have seen your face,” she says. I huff and she responds with a bigger smile. “How was th
What was I seriously thinking? That a kiss will change anything? This isn’t a movie or a high school romance, the Badboy doesn’t end up with the nerd. Hell, I will finish high school without a boyfriend and I will die a virgin.He should have walked away. I would pick his silence over his words. We are not friends so why did he kiss me? Oh, I get it. To prove a point. I was nothing more than a little experiment to the jerk.A tap on my shoulder causes my head to snap up. I am still where Ben left me. Daniel grimaces, I hold a finger to stop him from talking. “If you know what’s good for you, stay away from me.” I shake my head when his lips part, these boys are out to annoy me this morning. “I don’t want to hear it. I’m not the one you need to talk to anyways. Talk to Maria and leave me out of it.” My voice raises towards the end, a few heads in the hallway turn to us. “Talk to Maria, please,” I wh
Unknown: Hey, sorry it took so long to text you. I have been so busy with AJ I didn’t have time to read your letters and reply them. I am not ignoring you, I swear. Just busy :( This week has been so hectic.AJ? I know AJ and only one person says AJ. I snatch my phone from the nightstand and begin typing.Me: Hey stranger. What about now? Have you read them?Throwing my legs over the bed, I sit at the edge, back hunched and teeth between my lips. My feet drum into the floor as seconds roll by without his reply. The answer is easy. Yes or no. I toss the phone on my pillow and collapse to the bed. I count to twenty, then peek at my screen. No reply. I cup my face, glaring at the ceiling as I scream. I am dying to talk to someone about Ben. About our kiss.What should I do? I need advice.Maria is a no-no for now. She sure as hell wouldn’t want to hear about boys after getting her heart broken by one of them. Why do boys have t
I am falling. My instincts kick in, I try to grab onto the wall but my hands slice through thin air. Closing my eyes, I wait for my body to hit the ground but nothing happens.It’s too calm. No, wait. I am moving. I peel one eye open.The blue sky comes into view first, the roof is next, then a mop of brown hair with the owner squinting at me with worry etched on his face. I sit up slowly, hands stretched out to steady myself in case I fall again. I don’t fall because I am on something firm. I look down, I’m seated. I’m seated on a guy’s lap.As if reading my thoughts, his hand snakes around my waist to keep me down. “What are you doing?” I whisper-yell but the sound is drowned by the stadium. They are cheering too loud. “Let... Let go of me.”“Relax, Tessa. It’s me,” the boy says. My brows furrow, he chuckles. “Brian. Brian McCartney.”I don&rsquo
Stupid me. Stupid tears. Stupid Asher. Stupid Ben. Stupid feelings. I pat my pockets for my keys, I need to leave this stupid place. My search comes up empty and my feet grind to a halt. Come on.I march in the direction I came from, speedwalking to the small gate. The first place I check is the bleacher. Nothing. I pat my pockets again, refusing to believe I have lost my key. It was here with me.How do I get home? It’s getting late. My phone is in the car. I look up to the sky and groan. This is all Ben’s fault. I start the sad journey to my car, head cast down, arms wrapped around myself. I don’t know the first thing about picking locks. I don’t even have a bobby pin. The early November chill air hits me, the tip of my nose reddens as I shuffle to my car. I bump into someone, almost falling down for the second time today and my head snaps up.“Watch where you are going,” I bark, ready to punch sense into the idi
Me: He likes me back. We kissed. Oh, my God. We kissed not to prove a point but because he wanted to. We seem to be doing a lot of kissing but I like it. I don’t really know him but I want to know him. I don’t know what to expect. What do you think I should do? As a guy, would you appreciate it if a girl asked you out? Should I ask him out? Does that make me desperate? It does, right? I will wait for him to ask me.I shove my phone into my pocket without getting a reply. Let was right. It’s easier to chat with a phone. He hasn’t replied my letters and I have stopped checking. If he replies, he will let me know. I walk down the hallway alone. It still feels odd doing it without Maria but the memory from our kiss has me smiling.We kissed again when I dropped him off. He made me walk him to the door of his house and we kissed again. My cheeks heat up from the memory, I almost miss a step. We kiss a lot. I like it and I don’t like
I can’t stop thinking of Olivia.Chill air blows in through the opened window, I wrap an arm around myself as Abigail darts a murderous glance at me for the umpteenth time. If she’s so mad Ben chose to be with me, why can’t she take it up with him? Same with Olivia. If she wants me to stay away from Ben so badly, why can’t she tell him that?What happened to girl power? Why must we girls hate each other?“Then X gives you five.” Mr Sam’s voice jolts me out of my reverie.He scribbles on the board, rambles some more about X. I don’t think anyone is paying attention since he has repeated the same thing twice. A paper plane hits my temple, I narrow my eyes at the sender and Ben winks. My cheeks turn a shade darker. How did I land him? Ben motions for me to pick the plane at my feet. I delay for a nanosecond to get a reaction from him. He clasps his hands and juts his lower lip.A