Going back to school felt strange. Everyone was the same. No one seemed to have changed, yet I felt completely different. I walked through the hallways in a daze and when people would talk to me, I hardly listened to what they had to say.
After spending the rest of the weekend dealing with my mom after my uncle left, I was exhausted. He had left after we had a screaming match in the middle of the living room after I got home from James' house. He said that I was acting like a spoiled brat and was very disrespectful to my father's memory. I told him that he hosted the whole funeral to look more likable because he was an old dried-up prune that no one wanted to re-elect. His face had turned tomato red and he slapped me roughly across the face. My aunt and cousin took him to another room and yelled at me to go to my room. I stayed there until they left later that night, crying because I couldn't believe everything that had gone on. I admit,I was thoroughly bushed after practice. Taking a week off without sleep was not good for cheer. Now I sat in my kitchen staring at the pile of paperwork that I needed to get done. I separated everything that needed to be turned in sooner in one pile and later in another. As I began working on some calculus homework, my doorbell rang and I jumped up. Feeling a horde of butterflies erupted in my stomach. When I opened the front door he gave me a tight smile and raised his eyebrows. "Hey." "Hi. I'm set up in the kitchen. It has more surface area to set my work on." I let him in and shut the front door. I led him into my kitchen and watched him set his book bag down on one of the empty stools and sit down on another. I sat down opposite him and chewed on my bottom lip. There was a weird energy between us and I wasn't quite sure how to address it. "I have this pile that needs to be turned in these next couple of d
For the remainder of the week, James continued to come over to my house after practice to help me with my homework and to work on his own. During school, for some reason, neither of us acknowledged that we were seeing each other after school or friends of whatever it was that we were. It didn't stop me from giving Pink Streak a dirty look now and then. Especially when she would laugh loudly in the halls and touch his arms or when she would run and jump onto his back and climb onto him. It grated on my nerves, but I never let on to him that she bothered me. Instead, we would talk about schoolwork, he would ask about my mom and we would talk about people at school. We never dove into anything too deep. I felt like doing that would open up the book of emotions I had kept hidden away for another day. He would stay for a couple of hours and then leave and when he would leave, I would feel reality slap me in the face. Wi
"Yes!" We drove around a little in silence. Las Vegas was always lit up, no matter what time of day, so I was enjoying the lights from a distance. It made me think of the times when Dad and I would sit outside and just talk about our days and my competitions and boys. We were quiet for a while but it wasn't an uncomfortable silence. It felt good. I felt like I could just relax and not say a single thing and he would be okay with it. After a while, if just driving around our neighborhoods, he parked at the park near my house and laid his seat back. I followed his lead and I turned to face him. It felt a lot like the first night we were acquainted and I let those memories drift to the forefront of my mind. "What was your first time like?" "Sex?" "No, Skiing. Duh! Yes, sex!" I giggled and even in the dark I could see his cheeks darken. "Well...we just wanted to get it done and over with, so it was
JamesWhen I got up to put my clothes on I noticed the look of panic on Kelly's face. Her azure eyes were wide and she held her comforter up to her chest. I slipped on my boxers and smiled at her, hoping to cheer her up, and climbed back into bed with her.She sighed in relief and grinned back at me as I lay next to her and wrapped my arm around her. She snuggled up next to me and closed her eyes."I thought you were leaving." She said quietly."No. Not unless you want me to.""Nope." She popped the 'p' and wrapped her arm over my chest. I smiled down at her and kissed the top of her head. Kelly was like a drug. I knew being with her wasn't good, but I just couldn't stop myself from being pulled in.I had been determined on Monday to just leave her alone and let her do her own thing. But when Ms. Danforth gave her the thick a*s manila folder full of schoolwork she was missing, I couldn't help but ask her if she needed help. I was
Peppering his throat with kisses, I straddled him and moved my hands over his broad, muscular shoulders. I ground my hips against him and took delight in hearing him groan beneath me. It sent shivers of ecstasy down to my core. I moved my lips to cover his and felt his hands on my shoulders push me gently from his lap. I landed unceremoniously onto the cream colored carpet of the bedroom we had borrowed at one of our mutual friends' party. "What the f*ck, Dex!?" I stood up and smoothed down my white mini-skirt and fixed my blue knit crop top. "I've told you before, Kelly, I don't like when you kiss me after you go down on me. It's disgusting." I felt my cheeks flame and I grabbed my denim jacket from next to him on the end of the bed and pulled it on. "Did you have to push me to the floor? Jeez." I flipped my hair over my shoulder and walked to the floor length mirror in the corner of the bedroom. I fixed my long, wavy blonde hair back into place and glanced back at him."I'm sorr
"Boom! Gotcha!" I snickered as I set the game controller on the beige carpet in front of me. James groaned and wiped his hand over his face, grinning. "How are you so good at this?""My dad and I play all the time." I shrugged and straightened my legs out in front of me, careful not to let my skirt ride up. "That's just luck. She couldn't beat me one on one if she tried," Michael commented from the gaming chair next to me. "Dude, I beat you all the time. If she beat me, that means she can beat you." Michael curled his lips and shook his head."She must be cheating. What other games can you play?""I'm good at Mortal Kombat.""Shut up." Michael nodded at James and he quickly switched the game over. I rolled my eyes and took a sip of my drink right next to me. Michael flicked his lighter and lit the blunt we were working on and passed it to me after he took a hit.I took a small hit and coughed, not used to it. Both of the boys grinned and I rolled my eyes. I passed it to James as he
His heartbeat in my ear was slowly lulling me to sleep. I could feel my eyes droop and I tried to fight it because I didn't want this night to end. His fingers stroked through my hair slowly, over and over again, making me even more tired. But it felt so good. I was pretty sure we had both gone to sleep for a good twenty minutes when suddenly my phone rang. We both jumped at the loud sound in the dark, quiet room. I dug my face into his chest and covered my ears, ignoring it.After it quieted down I took my hand off of my ear and settled back down. "Do you want to check it?" He asked me through a yawn. I shook my head against his chest and inhaled his cinnamon and cologne scent. We settled back down and just when I felt so relaxed, my phone blared again. I huffed loudly and sat up, looking around for my jacket. I could barely see anything but saw the light from my phone screen. It was clear across the room on a small futon he had against the far wall. I groaned and stomped over to t
The water streaming down onto my body began to get cold. I decided a shower was needed to decompress everything that had happened in the last twelve hours. It didn't feel real. None of it felt real. I couldn't believe my dad had died. I couldn't believe that I was off having sex with a guy I barely knew while my dad was dying. It felt surreal to me that this was how I was going to remember losing my virginity.I ducked my head and let the water run over my back. I took a few steadying breaths and turned the water off. I didn't know how long I took in the bathroom. I just knew that I didn't know what else to do. My mom could be heard from down the hallway, moaning in pain and it struck me so deeply I couldn't concentrate on anything else.I had tried to sleep but it was pointless. My brain wasn't letting me. I just replayed the night's events over and over in my head. And I felt so much f*cking guilt over it, because my mind was divided between two events. The sex and my dad's death. I