Music booms from the earbuds plugged into my ears, I slap a hand against my hip in rhythm to the song infiltrating my mind. My head bobs, I nudge the door to the drama room open with my foot and stop.
Everyone is here.
Well, not everyone but half of the school football team is present. I yank the earpiece out and shove my phone into my back pocket. My feet refuse to function, I lick my lips, praying for my brain to send signals to them but they remain glued to the floor. The room is packed with tall walls of bricks in the form of jocks, I can almost touch the testosterone in the air. Their heads snap to me in unison, my eyes find my sneakers.
What are they doing here?
“Tessa, nice of you to finally join us,” Miss Jota says. The cheeriness in her voice washes off some of the awkwardness, I smile and walk briskly to where she’s seated. I am only a few minutes late so I know she won’t reprimand me but the unwar
A hush falls over the hall, I start for the stage, nearly exploding with anxiety. My heart beats against my chest, I feel eyes on the back of my head and all I want to do is scream, instead, I hurry to join Miss Jota. She points to a line in her script. Scene two. “We can start from here today,” she says. Unable to talk, I nod. Her hand lowers, she frowns. “Where’s your script?” I swallow, my finger juts in the direction of my school bag and she lifts a tiny brow, probably wondering why I left it there. In my hurry, I forgot it. “Do you know the lines?” I don’t know how I manage to nod but I do and she walks off the stage. “Start.” Blondie puts two fingers in his mouth to let out a whistle of support, Miss Jota’s stern gaze lands on him. “Quiet.” He offers a sheepish apology and her eyes fall back to me. “Tessa, over to you. We are waiting.” Ben is alone on the first row with the others seated behind him. He frowns when I delay to start and I lose
It is stupid. I can be prosecuted for this but I still think of it. How Ben’s finger felt against my lips. Gosh, I’m so hopeless and foolish for thinking about kissing the guy who treats me like gum on his shoe. Last night, I had a dream where he asked me out. I press another finger to my lips, trace the Cupid bow like Ben did. Butterflies flutter in my belly at the thought of kissing him on stage, he has to play Romeo, I’ll be Juliet. My inner voice mocks my fairytale and a soft sigh escapes me. I am getting ahead of myself again. Maria nudges my shoulder, I snap out of my reverie, trying desperately to wipe the smug smile off my face but it sticks. “What?” I yell when she wiggles her eyebrows suggestively like she caught me with a hand in the cookie jar. “Maria. Speak now or forever hold your peace.” Her brows only shoot higher, she winks and I roll my eyes. She does this a lot, makes you so antsy you start confessing to unknown crimes. “Fine, don’t say
“Your shirt is hot,” Blondie tells me.My head lowers, I smoothen the front of the white shirt I borrowed from Maria. “Um, thanks.” He winks, my fake smile widens. After Olivia made a mess of my shirt, I had to get a new one and the only thing my best friend found was a skin-tight top highlighting the shape of my upper body. I don’t need to look hard enough to see the outline of my bra and I know that’s what drew Blondie’s eyes to me. I need to stop calling the poor boy by his hair colour. Shouldn’t he be with the set design group? “Where’s Miss Jota?”After giving instructions to the set design group, she left without a word. He shrugs. “Dunno.”Ben is not here. Has he seen that stupid video? How did he react? He must have laughed his heart out. Someone chuckles behind me, my neck twists to get a look of the culprit and Noah winks at me. I quickly avert my gaze, eyes
By 4 am on Friday, I am awake and mixing cake ingredients in the kitchen for a jackass who confuses the hell out of me. My movements are slow as I hop from one corner to another, getting the pan and other items ready. I might have won last night’s match but Pablo did a good one on me. The bastard managed a kick to my cheek before I knocked him out. I will need an extra layer of foundation to hide the marks.“Sweetheart, what are you doing?”If I wasn’t so sleepy, I might have jumped out of my skin in shock but my body delays my reaction to her presence. I blink sleepily at Mum, she saunters to the sink to fill her empty glass. “Baking, Mum.”“By this time?” She rubs the back of her hand against her eyes and leans on the fridge for support. Her gaze runs over me, I must look the sight with flour on my face and fingers buried in dough. “What time is it?”“Um, I don’t k
Maria is crazy. Like insane. Her only solution is much more crazy. I close my eyes once another student walks into the class. The person occupies the seat beside me, I stiffen. His cologne makes it easy to identify him but I don’t glance his way. He kissed her. I am only taking one of the two pieces of advice Maria offered—to stay away from the site until something bigger blows this over. Their kiss is everywhere on the site, they are trending as couple goals. Yuck. As for her other advice, no, never.On our bucket list, item number two is: Tessa will get a boyfriend. And today, Maria changed it to: Tessa will date Benjamin. I almost burst out laughing from thinking about it. I can’t even get a kiss. The guy will not look at me twice. It’s bad enough I have to complete most of the items on the list before the school year runs out, now, she wants me to date Ben. God forbid. Not after he has had his lips on that walking disease called Olivia.
It takes me five days to reply Let. While we are waiting for Miss Jota to show up, I find a comfy space at the back and start drafting my reply. It’s short. I don’t have much to say to him but I try to be supportive.Me: How did it feel? Was it good? Did sparks fly everywhere? Did it feel like the movies? Is she your girlfriend now? Will you two get married and have kids? Lol. Tell me, tell me everything, I want to know.The ache in my heart grows as I fold the note and tuck it in my bag. I’ll drop it off tomorrow. What was I thinking? A hot stranger will fall for me? The only reason he still talks to me is out of boredom. He said it himself, girls are easy for him to get. I hug myself, trying to hide in the shadow as Ben’s head turns in my direction.Maybe it’s all in my head but he has been avoiding me. Sure, we have a few classes together but he sat beside Abigail today. I am not bothered. Na. I can never be. I am ove
Let: It was okay, nothing like the movies but there was a lot of tongue. Honestly, I regret it. I wish I gave my first kiss to someone I like. Don’t be like me, make sure your first kiss is someone you love or you will spend the rest of your life thinking about it. Anyways... Are you going for the Halloween party? I don’t think I’ll go, I have had enough parties to last me the rest of school year. Parties are a waste of time.Me: I agree. A big waste of time with horny teenagers and loud music. Sadly, I will be going :( because my best friend will be there and I can’t break her heart, she will skin me alive. I have my costume, don’t ask, I’m not telling. Thanks for the advice but why did you kiss someone you don’t like? I can’t do that. I want my first kiss to be special. I want to have my first kiss with my husband. Is that cheesy? I know it is ;) but don’t you dare laugh at me. It’s crazy that we are in the same sc
The music is loud, too loud. It’s barely 8:30 pm but the smell of alcohol clogs the air. Drunk teenagers of varying degrees crowd the mansion, a few students are dancing on a pool table. One of the females from school is getting ready to strip, the boys surrounding the table are encouraging her with whistles and catcalls.Maria drags me into a quieter area before the live show starts, we meander through sticky bodies to the kitchen. I will never get naked in front of anyone but I don’t have a problem watching other people do it.Half-empty red solo cups are on the countertop, I avoid touching them as Maria waltzes to the tall fridge like the landlady. I shake my head at her behaviour but she ignores me. Someone clears their throat from the door, our heads snap to the door and Maria turns into a blushing queen. She’s a goner with Daniel.Red dots appear on Daniel’s cheeks when their eyes meet, he stops in front of us with
I feel like sexual assault against the male genders is not talked about as much as in the case of the female genders. As a friend to a few males who have been molested by people who were supposed to care for them, I knew I had to write about it someday. And I hope I was able to bring awareness to this, however little, through Ben. It’s never okay to molest a child. It’s never okay to molest anyone. That being said, here are some fun facts about this book; 1. It’s my first attempt at teenfiction. I was almost certain readers would notice and call me out on that. 2. BBTB was supposed to be a short story project. I was so worried it would be a flop so I planned to make it between 40-80 chapters. But the story grew wings and took off on its own. 3. This is the longest story I have ever written. I am just as surprised as you are and I was pleasantly shocked to see comments wanting their lovestory to go on for much longer. Those comments kept me going even on the bad days. So, thank y
It hurts too much. My body is on fire and it’s not yet right to push. Why isn’t it time? I need them to get the baby out of me. Not later, now. Sweat drips down my forehead and my eyes sting with tears. The doctor has stopped the bleeding. I have been cleaned up, changed into a hospital gown. They say everything is fine but it’s not. The contractions are ripping me from inside out and all Ben does is mutter unintelligible gibberish. He put the baby inside me, he should experience the pain too. “Are you okay?” Ben asks. I glare at him. How can I be okay? Whatever the doctor gave me is keeping me awake so I have no respite from the pain. Ben pushes my hair away from my sweaty forehead and I lean into him for comfort. I’m tired but I’m glad our son is okay. “I’m sorry, Gracie,” my husband says. Pushing past my pain, I offer him a questioning glance. Maddie is fine, right? My parents are okay too, right? Ben wipes the tears spill
I am packing up for Maddie’s weekend getaway when Ben strolls into her room. He picks a toy from the floor, tosses it into the air and catches it. I stall when he crosses over to me. All his attempts to take over the packing from me are futile. He protests by shaking his head. I am pregnant, not handicapped.When the bag is zipped up, I lower myself to the bed to catch my breath. Maybe I should have let him do it. But he never lets me do anything.Worried eyes stare into mine as Ben kneels between my legs. I’m fine, just tired. I pick the stuffed bear he dropped on the bed and sniff it. It smells like Maddie. And if I listen closely, I’ll hear her voice as she sings along with her favourite characters on TV.Maddie’s grandparents—my parents are in town because I’m due next week. They don’t want to miss it. She’s spending the weekend with them.Ben pries the bear from me and traces the
Laughter erupts from the living room, a kid’s voice follows and my lips curve in a smile. I pause the YuuTube tutorial I’m watching and set my tab down on the counter. I’m trying a new recipe I found online. Ben has been working extra hours so he can’t cook as much anymore and I’m tired of takeouts for dinner.With a hand under my belly, I meander to the living room. Maddie is on her feet, clapping and giggling at the television. There’s an old show playing. A family series I starred in one year after graduation. I clear my throat and my baby girl spins to face me. She grins and everything feels right. The nine hours of labour, the screams, the pain. They don’t matter.Running towards me, she stops a few inches from me and grabs my hand. “See Mummy,” she says, pointing at the television. I’m helping the second male lead set up his outfit for work. Her blue eyes flash with childlike innocence when she run
I feel the stare before I turn to Maria. “Will you stop?” I mutter. She says nothing but her eyes lower to my swollen belly, making it so obvious she had been staring. “Maria Vega.”“Theresa Carter.”Pink colours my cheeks. I hide my face in my palms and she bursts out laughing. It still feels so surreal being Mrs Carter, Ben’s wife. Our wedding was small and private like we both wanted. Aside from our family, we had our friends. Maria. Leah. Mira. Calum. Olivia also showed up. She and Ben are still in contact. We are kind of cool.Thinking about the wedding makes me smile and I twist the ring on my forth finger. My promise ring remains on my middle finger.I sit up and cross my legs. There are some pictures from the wedding scattered all over the living room floor. Maria didn’t get a chance to see them before her flight. She had a concert that day. I rub a hand over my stomach. Ben didn’t
Where is Ben? We will be late.I step out of the bathroom in only a towel and sashay to the wardrobe to get the gown for our date. There are a few options but I select a navy blue off-shoulder gown. Flipping through my playlist, I settle on Maria’s new single and settle down in front of the vanity to make myself up.A smile curves my lips as I brush my hair. I don’t look so bad at all. The makeup tutorial classes on YuuTube and Maria’s extra sessions come in handy as I apply foundation to my face. My gaze flies to the door. I’m in my room. Ben wasn’t in his room when I checked but he should be getting ready.The door creaks. I look up but Ben doesn’t walk in. My eye makeup is done. I apply a bright red lipstick and the door finally opens. Ben stalks into the room wearing a tux. My man is hot but in a suit and Oxford leather shoes, he is hotter. He closes the door with his foot and leans on it so I can assess
The drive to Ben’s office is a blur. I’m out of the car and in front of his office in a flash. I miss him. And I haven’t seen him in eight hours.I knock once on the door and open before he ushers me inside. Locking the door behind me, I bridge the gap between us and crush him in a hug. We live in the same house but God, I want to be in his presence all the time.“You’re back so early,” Ben says against my lips. I kiss him hard to make up for the hours without any kisses. Ben chuckles and hoists me on the edge of his desk. Then, he stands between my legs. “I missed you too, babe.”I grin. “I missed you more.”Ben touches his forehead to mine. “You’re here,” he says. His smile is sad. I nod against his body and his hands slip into my gown. I help him with the zip and pout. “I didn’t think you would make it today.”I had a pho
The mixer whirrs to life. I throw in more flour, add three eggs and whisk the batter into a smooth mix. Calum, my unwilling apprentice, watches from behind the counter. He came in last night. On my command, Calum oils the pans for the cake and turns on the oven. Done, he edges close to me. I swat his hand before he dips his finger into the mix. “Come on, Tessa. I came all this way, let me have some.” I roll my eyes. He came all this way, uninvited but I’m happy to see him. I empty the batter into the small pan. We will eat from that. “Just a taste.” “Fine.” I shove the spatula in his face and he snatches it from me. My face scrunches in disgust when he licks the spatula clean like a hungry dog. “Calum, what’s wrong with you?” He shrugs. “Nothing?” It feels like there’s something but I continue emptying the batter into the pans. When I’m done, I bring out the ingredients for the icing. Today is Ben’s
A look of fear flashes across her face. She levels me with a stare that shows she’s trying to control her temper. It’s unfair that I have to watch her kiss other guys under the guise of it being part of the job. “You are just making up scenarios that don’t exist,” she says. “Your job doesn’t even require it, Benny.” “But your job does...” I twist my hands so hard they ache. She doesn’t get it. “...and I don’t like it, Gracie.” Various emotions flicker on her face. She opens and closes her mouth twice without saying a word. The third time, she murmurs, “You asked me to trust you when Elena was involved, right?” I did. And I’ve established boundaries at the office, at school too. For fuck’s sake, she’s my screensaver, I wear my ring. They know I belong to Gracie. “So, can you please trust me on this one? It’s just a job, babe.” “Babe, it’s not the same.” Gracie stomps her feet in annoyance. I grit my teeth. She’s not the only one getti