by L. P. Dillon
"Yeah, sorry Mom, I should have called you, but I haven't seen Payton around much," I replied honestly, knowing she’d be interested and change the subject. She saw Payton as another one of her kids since we’d been inseparable, so telling mom about her and Connor would make my mom happy too.
"Really, but I thought you two were stitched at the hip?" she joked.
"Ha-ha, very funny. No, she's met a guy."
"Already? That was fast. What's he like? Is he cute?" The questions flew out of her in a rush of excitement.
"Mom, really? Yeah, it was fast, but you know Payton, she never falls head over heels. This guy is different. He is cute, and they just clicked. It's kind of awesome, actually, I've never seen her like this before, and I know it sounds crazy, but it's like they were made for each other." I couldn’t ignore the twinge of jealousy in my tone.
Don't get me wrong, I was really happy and excited for her, and I didn't like Connor like that. Not that he wasn't handsome because he was, but he was just too sweet for me. The jealousy came because they had clicked so fast. Sure, I had Chase's attention, but he was complicated and reminded me so much of Kyle. I didn't think I would have let my walls down so much if Kyle hadn't shown up. I couldn't believe I was on my third day here and my mind was already fucked up over some guy. I felt so disappointed in myself.
"Sweetheart, you sound a little sad. I thought you'd be happy for, Payton?" my mom asked, her voice filled with concern.
"Oh, I'm happy for her, I really am. It's just Kyle turned up on Friday and things got a little heated."
I know I lied to her about losing my phone, but that was because I didn't want to rub it in her face that I was partying already. She knew that I partied hard because she'd been the one to pick me up most of the time, but she always understood and told me that she was the same when she was younger. I just didn't like the disappointed tone she used, so it became an unspoken subject. When it came to the important stuff, though, I could always go to my mom, and she would always listen and be supportive. Sometimes, she even gave terrific advice, so no matter how bad it was, I always told her the big stuff.
"Oh my God, what happened? I got a call from Alice asking me to go to their house and patch up his face. She said that he'd had a fight with a guy over some girl at a party, but she didn't mention that he'd come out there to see you. What in the hell was he thinking? Are you okay?" Her tone was a mix of anger and panic.
"Yeah Mom, I'm okay. He sent me flowers, and then just turned up, demanding that I take him back. He said I should be grateful that he wants me, and I should just take him back..." I explained, but before I got to tell her about his violent outburst, she interrupted.
"He said what? That son of a bitch! Who the hell does he think he is? He doesn’t realize who he’s thrown away, does he? I think I know what happened. He just turned eighteen, right?" she asked me, and I furrowed my brow, wondering what that had to do with anything.
"Yeah, five weeks ago, why?" I asked, curiosity plaguing my tone.
I heard my dad whisper, “Lainey.”
Clearing her throat, my mom replied in a calmer tone, "I just mean that maybe he finally started thinking with his brain, instead of what's in his pants. Some boys start the growing up process at eighteen. But, if I'd have known that he come out there and upset you, I would have told Alice to fix her own son’s face, because if I'd have gone around there knowing that, I would have broken his nose even more."
"He had a broken nose?"
I didn't know why I cared, but maybe it was because we were together for so long so I couldn’t help the concern I felt for him. It annoyed me, and I hated that side of myself. No matter how much someone hurts me, I could never truly hate them. I just wasn't capable of pure hatred, even though I wished I was.
"Yeah, his face was a complete mess, what happened? Are you the girl Alice was talking about?"
"Yeah, I think so. It wasn't at a party, though. Kyle was nasty when he came. He grabbed my wrist, and then when I asked him to let go, he pulled me by my hair and dragged me across the floor..."
I stopped talking as soon as I heard a growl that sounded like it came from the other end of the phone.
"Was that a growl?"
"Oh, yeah, it's one of your Dad's nature programs. Can you turn that TV down, please? Right, please keep going, sweetheart," she replied. I couldn’t help but smile. Dad had always been and would always be obsessed with his nature shows.
"Right, well our next-door neighbor Chase came to my rescue, and he and some of his friends beat Kyle's ass. Then Chase got someone to drive him home."
"Oh, sweetie, I'm so sorry you went through that. He is such a messed-up boy. I don't know if I can still be friends with Alice," she said angrily.
"Oh no, Mom. You both have been friends since you were children. She can't control what her son does. This isn't her fault."
"I know sweetie, but how can I face the woman knowing her scumbag son laid his filthy hands on my baby girl? It was bad enough after he cheated on you. Even then, it took ages for our friendship to return to normal."
"Mom, please, I swear I'm okay. Don't punish yourself, or her, for his disgusting actions. I couldn't deal with the guilt." I pleaded. The thought of her losing her best friend because of my fucked-up relationship broke my heart.
"Okay Brie, calm down. I'm sorry. I didn't think. You don't need any of my feelings thrown at you since I’m sure you feel bad enough as it is. Let's just change the subject. So, who’s this Chase? What’s his last name? Does he come from a good family? Is he as adorable as his name? And..." She rambled on and on, asking so many questions I couldn’t keep up, even if I wanted to, which I didn’t because I wasn’t in the mood.
"Walker…” I paused as she gasped. Did she know him? No, she couldn’t possibly. I shook the ridiculous thought out of my head and continued. “We're just friends. Actually, I think he might be gay," I cringed as the lie slipped out of my mouth.
"Who might be gay?" Chase asked from my now very open door.
Crap!
"Um, Mom, I have to go. I'll call you later. I love you," I said, rushing the words out.
"Who's that? Is that him? Are you one-hundred percent sure that he's gay..."
Beep
I quickly hung up before she could say anything else, then set the phone on the table and glared at Chase.
"I thought you were going to knock, and then wait to be asked in from now on?"
"I did knock, twice in fact. But you didn't answer, and I heard you were on the phone, so I knew you weren't near the door," he replied casually as he strolled in and placed a coffee and bagel on my bedside table.
"What are you doing here, Chase?" I asked with an annoyed sigh.
"I brought you a coffee, and I wanted to check how you were doing. You know, after the door, and wall, and misunderstanding at the restaurant."
"Misunderstanding? Really, is that what that was?" I snapped at him while raising a questioning eyebrow.
"Well yeah, what else would you call it?" he asked, taking a seat on Payton's bed.
I swear he's spent more time on that bed than Payton has, I thought to myself as I stared at him.
"I don't know what the fuck it was.” I waved my arm back and forth between us. “I don't even know what this is."
Chase let out a sigh, then glanced at me with a smirk, deepening those sexy dimples. Excitement flashed through me when he climbed to his feet and stepped to my bed. Raising his eyebrows at me, I knew he was asking permission to sit beside me, so I pulled my legs to the side and patted the bed with my palm. When he sat, he leaned forward, planting his elbows on his knees and staring at the floor, almost as if he was trying to figure out what to say, or maybe psych himself up to say what he wanted to. Either way, it was kind of adorable.
After several more seconds of silence, he sighed again, then swept his hands through his dark blond hair. Butterflies somersaulted in my belly.
Turning to me, his emerald green eyes gazed int
o mine. "Look, Aubrey. I thought I explained it well in the car yesterday, but I didn't. I wanted to ask you out for dinner tonight. I was going to explain everything, but I guess I need to tell you now."
I stayed silent and let him take a few seconds to build up the courage to say what he needed to. He was clearly struggling with something, and I didn't want to discourage him.
"I know it's only been a few days. But the minute I saw you, I knew you were the one..." His tone lowered and was shaky with nerves.
I actually burst into laughter. "Did you seriously just say that? I'm sorry Chase, but dude, how cliché is that? Did you see it in a movie last night or something? Does that crap actually work on the girls you hit on?" I squealed, almost cackling at that point. The second I looked into his eyes every bit of laughter ceased.
"Chase, what the hell is wrong with your eyes? Are they black?" I shouted as I edged forward to get a closer look.
Yeah, they were definitely black.
Scrambling backwards on the bed to get away from him, I panicked, not knowing what to do. Should I try to fight him off? No, I didn’t feel like I was in danger, at least not yet. Should I jump off the bed and make a run for it? No, I knew how fast he was. I’d never make it.
So instead of doing either of those things, I screamed, hysterical fear-driven shrieks erupting from deep inside of me. Words were mixed into the screams, but even I had no idea what I was saying, so I’m sure Chase didn’t have a clue. It was worse than a freak-out. My heart pounded so hard I could hear it in my ears and sweat poured down my forehead. When the shaking started, I knew I had to get away from him. And fast.
He grabbed his shades from the neckline of his t-shirt where he had stored them, before hurriedly putting them on. Standing up, he held his hands out defensively. "Please, Brie, calm down. I can explain, but you have to stop screaming first," He scanned the room, clearly worried about people hearing me.
"No, I'll keep screaming until you leave. What the hell are you?"
He stepped forward and I immediately scrambled back some more on the bed, but I’d backed myself into the corner with nowhere else to go.
"Look, I can explain it all, but not like this. Not here. Please trust me!" The sincerity in his voice almost had me believing him, but after what I’d seen, it was impossible to think about anything else. I needed to know, and I needed to know yesterday.
"No, Chase! Tell me what you are right now, or I'll scream the whole fucking place down," I said, my body tense and my tone sharp.
He removed his shades, running a hand down his face while exhaling heavily. But he didn’t answer, so I inhaled a huge breath, and let it out in a banshee-like scream.
I'm not letting whatever the fuck he is eat me, or whatever his kind does, no damn way! I thought as my scream hit an all-new high pitch.
He rolled his eyes at me and, with lightning speed, rushed over to me, covering my mouth with his hand as he crouched behind me. I tried to scream through his hand, but it was no use. It just came out a muffled moan. I was absolutely crapping myself, and I didn't know what he was going to do. I'd watched far too many horror movies, and the first thought that went through my mind was that he was going to twist my head and snap my neck.
But, to my surprise, he just got his phone out of his pocket. "Connor, I've got a problem, Aubrey is freaking out. I was sloppy and..." He paused, falling silent for a second while he listened to the voice on the other end. "Yes, I know I'm an idiot! Look, just send in the witches, will you? And be quick about it"
I squirmed, trying my best to wiggle out of his grip.
I was right before. He had been talking about real witches. It had never been Connor’s sisters. They wiped my mind, and like hell, they’ll be doing that again.
Mustering up my courage, I twisted in his arms, managing to dislodge his hand a little. Then I bit down on his finger as hard as I could. I guessed he shouldn’t have kept it so close to my mouth.
With a pain-filled shout, he jerked his hand away. I didn’t hesitate. Jumping off the bed, I ran like the wind for the door.
As soon as I flung the door open, Erika and Gemma were there. Their hands glowed with a bright aqua-colored flame as they chanted. They stepped forward, and I tried to take a step back, but instead, I was catapulted through the air, landing on my bed with an “oomph.”
The world turned dark as the girls’ chanting faded into silence.
I began to stir, and my head was banging. It was all foggy like I'd been drinking the night before. I moaned lightly as I tried to sit up.
"Hey, take it easy. Let me help," Payton said softly. I opened my sore eyes and tried to focus on the blurry figure that stood beside me. She held onto my arm and helped me to sit up.
"Why do I feel so crappy? And what time is it?" I asked her in a crackly voice.
"I let you sleep in, it's nearly eleven in the morning. You haven't seen yourself yet, have you?" Payton rushed over to the dressing table, coming back with a mirror that she held in front of my face.
My face slowly came into focus and I gasped. "Oh my God! That looks so much worse than I thought it would," I said in a hushed voice as I poked at my nose.
I had two black eyes and my nose was really swollen. I prodded at the discolored skin beneath my eyes and winced in pain.
"How the hell am I supposed to walk around campus like this?" I asked Payton while still prodding at my bruises.
"Wait there, I have an idea," she said excitedly, and then rushed off and began rummaging through her bag.
After she went through my makeup bag, she came over and bounced on the bed, sitting cross-legged in front of me. Plopping some of my foundation on a sponge, she dabbed it around my eyes. I flinched, and she offered a soft smile as she pressed a little lighter. A few minutes later, she’d finished, and she took out a skin-colored Band-Aid and applied it to the top of my nose.
"There, all done!" she said triumphantly.
"What's the Band-Aid for?" I asked, angling my head towards her.
She held up the mirror so that I could see my face. The bruises were still visible, but a lot less shocking than they were before.
"We can tell people that you had a nose job!" she squealed.
I couldn't help but chuckle at her. It was a fantastic idea, and no one would judge me for it. If anything, they would probably just ignore what I looked like. It was so common for girls to have nose jobs where I came from. I’d even known several in high school that had them done.
"You're a genius Payton, you know that?" I said as I leaned forward, grabbed her face, and then kissed her forehead.
"I know, I know. Now get your ass up because we need to go shopping!" she said, hopping off the bed.
"Why do we need to go shopping?" I asked in confusion. We hadn't signed up for classes yet, so we didn't need to go book shopping.
"There are a bunch of Sorority meet and greet parties today and tonight. I thought we'd go and check them out," she replied while grabbing her wash bag and towel.
"Sounds good, I'll grab my stuff. I'll have to redo my face again, though."
"No worries. I have a whole bag of Band-Aids," she said as she picked up my wash bag and towel for me.
After we showered, we went back to our room and got ready. I managed to cover the bruises up even better this time, and apart from my swollen nose, I looked almost normal again, even after placing the Band-Aid over the bridge of my nose again. With my hair in a messy bun, black high-waisted skinny jeans, a light aqua blue shirt tied just below my chest, and a pair of black high tops, my look was complete. I grabbed my phone and then remembered that I hadn't called my mom yet.
It surprised me that she hadn’t blown up my phone with texts. Dialing her number, I waited for her to answer.
"Hey Mom, I'm so sorry I haven't contacted you sooner, I lost my phone, and..."
"Slow down, Brie. Are you okay?" Her tone was filled with confusion.
"Yeah, I'm fine, why?"
"Don't you remember us speakin
g a few hours ago?" she asked bluntly.
"Um, no. Maybe you're confused, I've been asleep all morning," I said as I furrowed my brow, not understanding what she was talking about.
"Oh, um…oh yeah, I spoke to Payton. Is she there?" She asked in a chirpy tone.
"Uh, yeah, I'll just get her, one sec," I said as I tapped Payton on the shoulder and handed her the phone. Picking up my black hoodie, I pulled it over my head while trying to listen to their conversation. I definitely had an issue with eavesdropping.
"Hi, Lainey. Huh? Yeah, she did, don't worry it’s sorted now.”
I faintly heard my mom say witches, but her voice was quickly cut off by Payton. “Okay, I'll tell her, bye."
Payton hung up the phone and handed it back to me. I furrowed my brow as I dropped it in my back pocket.
"What was that all about? What's sorted?" I asked her while she finished doing her hair, expecting her to go into detail about why my mom said witches.
"Oh, well I told your mom about, Kyle..."
"You did what? Why would you do that?" I snapped at her.
"I'm sorry Brie, she was giving me the third degree because you hadn't contacted her, and then she wanted to speak to you, but I tried to wake you up and you weren't having any of it. So, I panicked and blurted it all out," she explained, and I felt bad for her.
"It’s okay Pay, I would have told her about it eventually anyway, so don't worry about it," I reassured her while pulling her in for a hug.
We walked out of the room laughing and joking as we headed to our first Sorority meet and greet.
It was now seven p.m. and we had gone to four meet and greets. They were okay, but not quite a perfect fit for both of us. There was one place that I liked that was very academically minded and focused but still partied. But keeping your grades up and being academically gifted was the important element to them. It sounded wonderful to me, but a 4.0 GPA was needed, and Payton did not have it. I could have joined without her, but she was my best friend and I wanted us to stay together.
