by Kai Juniper
"Susan's here. We're going out for an hour or so. Can I trust you to leave you here alone?"
"Yes. What do you think I'm going to do?"
He folds his arms over his chest. "Go see a boy."
"Dad, for the last time, I'm not dating anyone, and if I was, it definitely wouldn't be Briggs Chadwick. I'm going to say hi to Susan." I go around him and out to the living room. Susan's sitting on the couch, looking over at the bookcase that's filled with photos. I wonder if it bothers her to see all the photos of my mom, most of which include my dad with his arm around her.
"Hey, Susan," I say, going up to her.
She gets up. "Hi, Ella. Sorry to interrupt your father-daughter night. I didn't know about it or I wouldn't have stopped by."
"Don't worry about it. I was going to bed anyway."
"We won't be gone long," my dad says, appearing beside Susan. "We're just going to get dessert. We won't be out late."
"Yeah, got it," I say, trying not to roll my eyes. What does he think I'm going to do? Run off to see Briggs the minute he leaves? It's tempting, but I wouldn't do it. Besides, Briggs isn't even home. I'm sure he's at the party by now.
"We should get going," my dad says, putting his arm around Susan. It's weird seeing him do that. I don't mind him dating, but I'm not ready to see him being affectionate with her.
"Before you go," I say to Susan. "Any update on the hit-and-run?"
"We have some new leads," she says. "But no suspects yet."
"What are the leads?" I casually ask.
"We traced the 911 call that night to a pay phone at an old gas station outside of town. The owner closed the place down last month, but we talked to him and found out he has some cameras installed around the building. He's trying to see if he still has the recordings from that night."
There were cameras? Briggs said there weren't. Shit. I was standing next to Briggs when he made that call. The cameras definitely would've seen me.
"When do you think he'll get you the video?" I ask.
She pauses, looking puzzled by my question. It was too specific, and not relevant if I'm just casually interested in the case. I need to be more careful so I don't give myself away.
"Sorry about all the questions," I say with a laugh. "My friend Charlotte's really into crime investigations and she keeps asking me to find out more."
"I don't know when we'll get the video," Susan says, "assuming he still has it. Even if he's able to provide it, I'm not confident it'll do us much good. I inspected the cameras the other day and they're very low quality. The video might be too grainy to make out who was using the phone that night."
"Were there any witnesses?" my dad asks. "People who might've driven by and seen who was using the phone?"
Susan nods. "Some men drove by, but they didn't get a good luck at the couple."
"Couple?" I ask.
"A young man and woman," Susan says. "That's all they could tell us."
Someone saw us? I don't remember anyone driving by, but maybe they did, and I didn't notice because I was too panicked about what happened.
"Let's go before the restaurant closes," my dad says to Susan.
"Goodnight," I say, racing back to my room. I shut the door and call Briggs. He doesn't answer. He must be at the party.
This whole time I kept thinking I was safe—that there wasn't any evidence that would prove I was there that night. But now there is, and even though it's not much, it's enough to make me a suspect.
Chapter Twenty
Ella
"I'm not worried about it," Briggs says the next day when I call to tell him people saw us at the gas station. "It was dark, and they were just driving by. There's no way they could identify us."
"Yeah, but the cameras could."
"Not if the quality is shit. If the cameras are as old and run down as that gas station, the video will be worthless. They won't be able to see that it's us."
"What if the people who drove by remember seeing the Range Rover?"
"It doesn't prove anything. It's not like it's the only one in town. Ella, I know you're freaking out about this, but you need to calm down. If you keep panicking, you'll look suspicious, especially to the cop dating your dad. Any chance that'll end soon?"
"No. He really likes her. He sees her almost every day. He was going to stay home tonight, but he just had to see her so he went over to her house right after we got home."
"How was work?"
"Same as always, except for getting asked out by Mr. Hanson's son. That was unexpected. We'd just finished the lawn and I was putting the equipment in the truck when he came up to me."
"And asked you out?" Briggs says. I could be wrong, but I swear I heard a hint of jealousy in his voice. "How old is this guy?"
"Fifteen." I laugh. "Too young for me, but he is kind of cute."
"So if he was older, you would've said yes?"
"Maybe. I don't know. Why?"
"No reason. Just a question."
It seems like more than that, like he's wondering if I'll go out with other guys after having sex with him. I'm not planning to, but if I was, I don't know why Briggs would care. We've never said we're dating. We don't even say we're friends.
"I finished the assignment," he says.
"I thought you didn't have time."
"I did it this morning. I'll email it to you in a few minutes and you can make whatever changes you want."
"Why don't I just come over and we can look it over together?"
"My dad's here with one of his friends. They're having drinks downstairs. And I'm going over to Finn's place in a few minutes."
"Just to hang out?"
"Yeah. Parker's already there. I need to hang out with those guys. They keep saying I'm going against them and siding with you. If they keep thinking that way, I'm going to lose control of them. I need to keep them in line if we have any chance of not getting caught."
"What are they saying about us?"
"Parker's still convinced we're having sex."
"We are."
"Yeah, but that's recent, and he doesn't need to know. The less those guys know about us, the better. I might even have to start treating you like shit again to get on their good side."
I don't respond, but I'm furious he'd even suggest that.
"I'm kidding," he says.
"That's not something to joke about."
"How about we meet tomorrow morning?"
"Where?"
"At our spot. Behind the bleachers."
"Why not just meet in the library?"
"I'm thinking they wouldn't approve of that," he says with a smile in his voice.
"Wait—aren't we talking about the assignment?"
"The assignment's done. Meet me behind the bleachers at seven. And wear a skirt."
I realize what he's implying and feel my face flush.
"Yeah, um, I'm not sure I'm ready for that. Outside? Where people could see us?"
"Nobody will see us, and it's up to you to tell me to stop. We'll take it as far as you want."
Does he really think I could tell him to stop once he starts kissing me and sliding his hand up my skirt?
"Okay, tomorrow at seven."
"See you then."
The next morning I show up at the bleachers wearing a short denim skirt and a t-shirt that's fitted, instead of one of the baggy ones I usually wear.
As I'm looking for Briggs, strong arms go around me from behind.
"You remembered the skirt," Briggs growls in my ear, his warm breath sending a shiver through me.
I smile and turn to face him. "You're actually on time."
"You really thought I'd be late for this?" He kisses me, and it's like we haven't kissed in months. What starts as a soft, slow kiss quickly turns fast and frantic, like we can't get enough, our hands grasping and groping each other.
After a few very intense moments of passion like I've never felt from a kiss, Briggs pulls away and looks around.
"What are you loo
king for?" I ask.
"A place to lay down. I don't want to do this standing up."
"Let's just lay on the grass."
"You'd really do that?" he asks, sounding surprised.
"Why wouldn't I?"
He smiles, then kisses me. "You are not like any girl I've ever been with. And believe me, that's a compliment."
He takes my hand and leads me to a patch of grass a few feet back from the bleachers. We're a little more exposed out here, but there's nobody around, and nobody coming. School doesn't start for another hour.
As soon as we lay down, Briggs captures me in his arms and pulls me against him, smiling. "I got an idea."
I smile back. "What is it?"
"Get on top. You won't get dirty and you can move whatever way makes you feel good."
"I don't think I'm ready for that."
"Just try it. A lot of girls like it better than the guy being on top."
I glance around, checking that we're alone. We are, but I still worry I'll feel too exposed.
"Nobody's here," Briggs says, noticing me looking around. "Try it. If you don't like it, we'll switch."
Moving on top of him, I straddle him, still not sure I want to do this.
"Come here," Briggs says. I lower down and he puts his hand behind my head and brings my mouth to his. "Just relax," he whispers over my lips. "Do whatever feels good."
We kiss, and his hand goes between us as he undoes his jeans. He tugs up my skirt and I feel the cool morning air on my skin. He slides his finger under my panties, moving them aside, and I feel the tip of him against me.
I suck in a breath, anticipating what's next and feeling a thrill of excitement knowing we're about to do this, outside, at school. It seems so wrong, which is probably why it's giving me such a rush.
"You good?" Briggs asks, looking in my eyes.
"Yeah." I smile at him.
"Whenever you're ready."
Just as I'm about to lower down, he stops me. "Wait!"
"What?" I sit up.
He reaches into his pocket and pulls out a condom, Within seconds it's out of the package and on. I think he's done that a few times.
"Okay, we're good." He smooths the condom with his hand, and keeps hold of his cock. "Come here." I lower over him and feel him position himself, then raise his hips as he enters me, but not all the way. "Now it's your turn. Take over. Do what you want."
I lower down, taking him inside me. His hand goes behind my head, pulling me towards him and bringing my lips to his. He kisses me, and it's a soft, gentle kiss that feels more intimate than all our other kisses, but maybe I'm just imagining it because of what we're doing.
This wasn't supposed to feel this way. I wasn't supposed to get my feelings involved. It was just supposed to be sex. If I was going to lose my virginity, why not lose it to the hottest guy in school? A guy with experience who might teach me a few things? But it turned out to be more than that. The other night, and right now, I'm feeling things for Briggs I don't want to feel. He's not even my boyfriend.
After a few minutes, I'm really getting into it. Briggs was right. Being on top lets me move in ways that create all kinds of different sensations. When I still a moment to take a breath, Briggs grabs my hips and thrusts deep inside me.
"Sit up," he says.
I rise up and let him take over, my body bouncing on top of his as he pumps into me, hard and fast.
It's so much better than the last time we did this. I'm not nervous and it doesn't hurt. It's just pure pleasure, building more and more as he moves inside me.
"Oh, God!" I cry out as it explodes through me, a feeling that's indescribable, but one I definitely want to feel again.
"Ella?" I whip my head to where I heard my name and see Charlotte standing at the end of the bleachers, her jaw dropped.
"Charlotte, what are you...why are you..." I stammer, horrified and shocked, seeing her there.
"You and...HIM?" Her hand goes to her mouth while her other hand points at Briggs.
"Charlotte, it's not what it—" I can't even try to say we weren't having sex when we clearly were. I'm still on top of him, my skirt hiked up.
"You lied to me!" she yells. "I can't believe you'd do this!" She turns and runs off.
"Shit," I say, looking down at Briggs. "What am I going to do?"
"You can start by getting off me before something leaks out of the condom."
"Oh." I stand up and push my skirt down.
"You want to go talk to her?" Briggs asks, as he zips up his jeans.
I sigh. "Not now. She needs time to calm down. I can't believe she caught us."
"You think she'll tell anyone?"
"Not if I tell her not to, unless she's so mad at me she doesn't care, which is a possibility."
"Why is she mad?"
"Because she likes you. She has a huge crush on you."
"Why me? I used to make fun of her."
"She thinks you've changed. I tried to tell her you hadn't, but she didn't believe me."
"And now she thinks you only told her that so you could be with me instead of her.”
"Yeah." I walk to the end of the bleachers and see Charlotte storming up the hill toward the school, her arms pumping. "She's really mad, but maybe I should try to go talk to her."
Briggs comes up behind me. "Go ahead."
I turn to him. "I'll tell her to keep it quiet, but I can't promise that she will."
"Whatever happens, we'll deal with it." He leans down and kisses me. "Go talk to her."
I find Charlotte in the parking lot, sitting in her car, blaring classical music so loud I can hear it through the windows. I like to blast hard rock when I'm angry, but Charlotte prefers Beethoven.
"Charlotte, open the door." I try to open it, but it's locked.
"Go away!"
I lean down and look at her through the window. "Let me explain!" I yell over the music.
She turns away from me.
"Charlotte, please just talk to me." I tap on her window. "I don't want our friendship to end because of this."
She lowers her window. "Maybe you should've thought of that before hooking up with Briggs!"
As she raises her window, I grip the glass, hoping she'll stop before she crushes my fingers. She does, but only when the glass is almost at the top.
"Would you at least let me try to explain?"
She purses her lips and stares straight ahead, her finger on the power window button. She lifts it just slightly, and just as I think she's going to slam down on it and cut off my fingers, she hits the button next to it, unlocking the doors.
I race around the front of her car and get in the passenger seat.
"It wasn't supposed to happen," I tell her. "I never wanted to do anything with Briggs. I swear."
She turns her head and glares at me. "And yet I caught you having sex with him behind the bleachers. How do you go from hating the guy to having sex with him? Or were you just pretending to hate him?"
"No, I really did hate him. I wasn't pretending."
"Then what changed?"
How do I explain this without telling her about the accident? Sharing that secret is what brought Briggs and me together, but I can't tell her that.
"We were doing those assignments for chem lab and meeting at his house, and I don't know...somehow we started getting along. He's really smart, and you know how much I love smart guys."
"You're saying this all started from doing homework together?" she asks in a tone that implies I'm full of shit.
"I know it sounds crazy, and I don't expect you to understand it. I'm still trying to understand it myself. I just need you to know that I didn't tell you to stay away from Briggs because I wanted him. When I told you that, I didn't know him the way I do now. Turns out you were right. He really does have another side to him, one that isn't an asshole."
She narrows her eyes at me. "Say whatever you want, but I don't believe you. There's no way you suddenly liked Briggs after doing a few homewo
rk assignments. And then you have sex with him? You were a virgin!" She yells it so loud the girl getting out of the car next to us stops and looks over.
The parking lot's starting to fill up as people arrive for school.
"I know it doesn't make sense," I say, lowering my voice as the girl next to us continues through the parking lot. "Like I said, I didn't plan on it."
"Oh, so Briggs forced himself on you? Is that what you're saying? Because just now, it looked like you were the one forcing yourself on him."
"I wasn't—let's not talk about that. The point is, yes, you're right, my first time was with Briggs, but again, I didn't plan on that happening."
"You plan everything, Ella, even stuff that doesn't matter. And you expect me to believe you didn't plan THIS? One of the most important moments of your life?"
"Okay, yes, I might've thought about it before I did it, but only after I'd started to have feelings for Briggs."
"You have feelings for Briggs? After a couple weeks?" she yells, so loud a girl walking by hears her and looks over at us.
"Would you please keep your voice down?"
"No! And I'm done listening to this. You lied to me, Ella. You knew how much I liked Briggs and you purposely told me to stay away from him so you could have him for yourself."
"That's not true! Charlotte, I swear to you I—"
"I don't care! I don't want to hear it! You lied to me, and I don't stay friends with people who lie to me!" She gets out of the car and slams the door.
"Charlotte, wait!" I get out to run after her, then decide to let her go. She needs to cool off. Maybe later I'll be able to talk to her.
"Briggs!" I hear Parker yell. I look over and see him walking up to Briggs as he heads into school.
Briggs glances back at me, holding my gaze for just a moment, before continuing into the building.
I hope Charlotte doesn't tell anyone about us. I was supposed to tell her not to, but I forgot. Getting out my phone, I text her. Please don't tell anyone about this. I really am sorry.
Go to hell! she texts back.
Chapter Twenty-One
Ella
Later that morning, when I pass Charlotte in the hall, she won't even look at me. Then at lunch, she walks right past our table and goes to one on the opposite end of the room.
