by S. Moose
"Go say hi," Jackson mutters.
Walking up to her, Katy and Jamie stare me down. I ignore them and keep my focus on the girl I love.
"Hey, Peaches." She shudders to her nickname. "How are you?"
Her head jerks up and her eyes turn to pure evil. "How am I?" She repeats to me, "I'm just fine, Treston. Perfectly fine," she rolls her eyes.
I hate when she does that. "Well, what's wrong?"
"Nothing's wrong. I don't feel like talking to you. Wait I take that back," she glares at me. “I wanted to be your friend and help you out, even though we broke up. But the way you’ve been treating me at practice, well, here’s a lesson for you Cheese. When you treat someone like shit be prepared to get it back.”
"Well, I've been meaning to talk to you. I have a lot to say and none of it would be good to say now, so can we please talk and not scream at each other?" She doesn't respond. She thinks I'm going to walk away like I did before. Wrong. "Oh.. so you're purposely ignoring me. I would hope that the time apart would make you realize how sorry I am. I gave you space and now I want us to talk." I'm not letting her go again. We've been apart for too long and I'm sick of seeing her miserable. And if she's fucking dating Baker she's breaking it off tonight. I don't give a shit.
"Guess what, Treston? The world does not revolve around you and when you’re ready. I’ve wanted to talk to you, but you ignore me. You pick fights with me and keep pushing me.”
“Well I want to talk. So can we?”
“You look like death."
"That's what happens when your heart's broken." She rolls her eyes and I'm about to take her into my room to talk when Henry comes up and places his arm around my girl. A growl escapes me and Katy comes to my side.
"Stop," she whispers, "Let's go back to the game. You need to give her space." I glare at him and soften my look when I find Zara's eyes.
"We're going to talk, Peaches. I’m sorry about before and I’m going to show you how we’re going to make this work. And Baker," I scoff, "You ain't got shit."
Walking back to the table with Katy, I play a few rounds of pong. Zara's nearby. Even though I can't see her, I feel her staring at me. After the last round, we take a few shots. I look for Zara and she's not around.
It's almost two in the morning so I figure she's home. Gavin sits on the couch with me after the crowd leaves. Katy's on his lap and they're both staring at me.
"What?"
"You have to give her space, Treston. I know it's killing you, but how do you think she feels? She didn't want to come to the party tonight. She did though and then you bombarded her."
"She didn't have to be a cold hearted bitch, though."
"No, that's your role." I close my eyes and mentally kick myself. "I came back to talk to you and figured you know what, why not? Hearing you of all people call me a bitch is low, Treston."
"I didn't move on, Peaches." I growl, standing up from the couch and turning to face her. "I've been waiting for you."
"I," she shouts, "Waited for you Treston. But the way you fucking left me at my parents’ house over Thanksgiving was low. And don’t sit there and lie. You know I’ve been wanting to talk to you. You know that."
There's people staring at us and I don't need an audience. I grab her hand and take her upstairs. She fights me, like usual, but I'm not letting her go. When we make it to my room, I shut the door and lean against it. It's just her and I.
Zara sighs, crossing her arms across her chest. "What do you want Treston? I mean, it's been months and I think it might be a little too late to try and make up for what you've done."
"No," I walk to her, careful not to get too close. "It's not too late. We needed time apart. I needed time to think and get my life back in order."
"We?" She says, "No, Treston. You needed time away from me, remember?
Hearing her say those words twists my heart. "I need you to forgive me, please." I have to try.
"Treston, I really can't. What you put me through hurt so bad, it broke me. I cried myself to sleep almost every night, then finishing the project with you. I almost dropped the class. When I was around you I couldn't breathe. You ripped my heart out and walked away. I didn't do anything to you."
"I know."
"Then how do you expect me to forgive you?"
"Because we love each other." She stares at me with a blank expression. There's nothing on her face to tell me what she's feeling. "I don't really do much anymore. I think about you all the time and sometimes have to drink myself to the point of blacking out because I can't make myself stop thinking about you and our memories. It hurts, Peaches."
"Good." She closes her eyes and I feel like I'm losing her.
"Please give us another try. You said you'd never let me down." I know it's a risk to play this game. I have to try everything I have to make her see how much I love her and want her back. She's all I want and it took me losing her to see that.
"And I didn't. You're the one who let me down." Her tone is defeated. I'm hurting her again.
"I don't mean to hurt you. I want you back in my life. Please tell me you'll come back."
"I can't."
"Please. It's tearing me apart to be away from you. I miss you and I miss having you in my arms. Can't you see how sorry I am?"
"I know that's how you feel. How am I supposed to know you're not going to go back to your old self and push me away? I don't trust you. I gave you everything. My heart, my body and my soul. Then you threw me out as if I didn't matter. I told you I am not one of your fucking skanks."
"No! You're not. You're the fucking woman I love and want to be with. Stop acting like a bitch and listen to me."
"Excuse me?" Her eyes narrow and I fear for my life. This is the second time I've called her a bitch. Fuck, I'm an idiot.
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to call you a bitch."
"Well, you did. Just let me out."
No. She can't leave yet. I wrap my arms around her waist and kiss her. My hands travel up her back to her hair until I'm cradling her face. "Open your mouth. Let me in, please." Slowly I feel her giving in. She's not punching me to go away, instead she falls into my arms and I feel her tongue on mine.
"I love you, Peaches. I love you so much."
"No." She shoves me away. "Stop. I can't do this with you. You're confusing me with your hot and cold. This isn't fair to me and I'm dating Henry."
"You can't be. You love me, remember?"
Tears burn my eyes when I hear she is dating him. Zara can't look at me. I know this is killing her too.
"Please," I beg her. "Don't do this. Give me another chance."
"I want to," she cries, "I want to so bad. I miss you and think about you, but I can't, Treston. You have to realize that I'm still broken." She clenches her chest and lets her tears fall. "Every day I wake up it's hard because I'm not waking up in your arms." I wince at her words.
"Then let me make this right."
"I'm done, Treston. I really am. There's nothing you can do or say to make me forgive you. It's too hard and you're not understanding where I'm coming from. Please, if you love me, then let me go."
"You're my everything. You're what I know. When we're together it feels like home and I'm happy. You fill my heart and make it easier."
"You did that for me too. I have to let you go and move on with my life. I have to focus on lacrosse. I have a game tomorrow, so please, can I leave?"
"Spend the night with me. Please."
I'm begging her and I don't care.
"No. You need to stop and let me go. I am over you. I won't miss you or think of you anymore."
CHAPTER 22
TRESTON
“ARE YOU FUCKING serious right now, Gavin?” I growl, staring him down.
“Come on man, it’s for a good cause,” he laughs, adjusting his polo and looking at himself in the mirror. “All the guys are doing it. Stop being a pussy and put on that million dollar smile.”
“Fuck you, man. This is bullshit.”<
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“Just let it ride,” the bastard laughs again.
I throw on a pink polo and stand in line, waiting to be called. The guys look excited while I’m here with a pissed off look on my face, waiting for this to be over and getting on with the night. Tonight's the boy toy auction to raise money for the Ronald McDonald House. I'm all for charity and giving back to the community. The nagging feeling I have isn't good. I've been paying attention to see who's bidding on who and Zara's been quiet. Too quiet.
The rules of the boy toy auction are that the winner is to make her boy toy do whatever she wants-non sexual of course. I'll be at the mercy of the winner for twenty-four hours. Now, this could go in my favor, or I could be in a bad position. I'm hoping for the former.
I’m the last one to be called and you’d think I’d be happy about this. Fuck. No.
“Ladies, get your money ready,” Coach Young announces, “I know you’ve been waiting for this moment for a while, but good things come to those who wait, huh?” There are cheers and girls calling out for me. “All right, you know the rules ladies. Behave and remember this is for charity. Now, let me hear you yell and scream for Treston The King Parker!” The girls go crazy as I shake my head and put on my million fucking dollar smile.
As soon as I step out into the light on stage, the bids start and already I’m at two hundred dollars. What. The. Fuck?
“Okay I hear two hundred. Do I hear three hundred?”
“Three hundred!”
“Three sixty!”
All right, so maybe Gavin’s right. I slowly lift up my shirt, giving the girls my classic nod, hearing them scream for more. I turn my head to Coach and he gives me the thumbs up. Pulling off my polo, I twist it around my head and let it go, watching the girls jump in the air, trying to catch my shirt.
“Five hundred.” The fuck?
Zara.
Her voice resonates and soon she comes up to the front of the stage.
“Five hundred. Do I hear five fifty?” Coach announces, but his voice seems far away. My eyes stay on Zara and her face remains stoic. I can’t tell what she’s up to, but I have a feeling it’s not good. Damn, I’m in fucking trouble.
Once the auction’s over, I head out to the hall and meet the winner of…Well, me.
Zara Borzilleri.
“Looks like I have you all night.” Her voice sends chills down my body. Damn girl.
I turn and flash an annoyed look. “Oh baby, I'm ready for you. I knew you'd come running back to me.”
“That's what you think,” she winks, curling her index finger and motioning for me to come closer. “Plus, I get to show you how much of a bitch I really am. Isn’t that what you called me? No wait, you called me a cold hearted bitch. Well babe, you're about to find out how cold hearted I can be.”
Fuck. Me. I didn’t necessarily mean to call her a bitch and I didn’t know she was around. It's been a week since we've talked. Can't say I'm surprised she remembers.
“Come on boy toy. We have a fun night planned,” she laughs, looping her am through mine.
She gets in the car and when I go to open the passenger door, it's still locked. "Can you open the door?"
The window partly slides down and clothes are being thrown at me. I hold up the black dress and stare at her through the window. “What the hell am I supposed to do with this?”
“Get dressed, King.”
My mouth drops open in shock. "You serious?"
"Sure am, sweetheart. Go change."
Looking around, I can't believe she's going to make me change outside in front of everyone. I'm not ashamed or embarrassed. She thinks she's going to make me crack. It won't work though. I'm willing to do anything to make her see I want her back.
Taking off my clothes, I put on the dress and this bitch is tight as fuck. I slide my clothes through the window and wait for her instructions.
"Start walking."
"With no shoes?"
"Oh! Silly me. I forgot." She hands me a pair of hooker heels. Fuck. I'm going to break something tonight. "Go on. Put them on."
"Fine," I smile at her. Two can play this game.
Putting on the shoes, she tells me to start walking toward the fields and I do. The guys see me and laugh. I ignore it and take it in stride. I'm not going to let her see that she's getting to me, even though in my head I'm murdering her.
When we get to the field, Zara pulls out a whistle and tells me to run sprints while wearing these damn heels. She blows the whistle in my face and I do as she says.
“Come on Parker! Get your ass moving.” I remind myself that I love this girl and murder is not the answer. “High knees, Parker,” she commands. Again, I do as she says. This is her idea of a fucking fun date? The fuck is this girl thinking?
I stop in the middle of the field about to throw up. We’ve been doing this for almost an hour and my damn feet hurt. Shit.
She comes over to me and blows the whistle. “Did I say stop?”
“Blow that damn whistle again Borzilleri. I dare you.” She does and immediately I take off the damn shoes and stand in front of her. “What the fuck is your problem?” Her eyes go wide.
“I paid five hundred dollars for this date and I can do whatever I want on it.”
“And it goes to charity. This is supposed to be a date. You know, something you should try.”
She huffs, looking away. “I don’t have time to date anymore. Men suck, sort of like the one I'm looking at now. What I take that back. I’m looking at a boy. Anyways, it's live and breathe lacrosse,” she mutters, grabbing her bag from the ground. “Come on, let’s go to dinner.”
"Well, you have time for Henry, don't you?"
"He's just there, Treston. Enough talking. I don't want to hear your voice." We walk down the hill to the car and we both get in.
I notice charms hanging from her rearview mirror. "Who got this for you?"
"Henry."
The car starts and she drives. I'm not sure where we're going, but I'm still in the dress."Can I change?" She shakes her head. "Fine. I like this dress anyways."
"Good. It looks awesome on you." I look over and see a smirk on her face. Placing my hand on her thigh, she tenses and glares at me. "Take your hand off."
"Nope. I'm your date tonight. Remember?" She doesn't respond. "So, where are you taking me anyways, my awesome date?” I try to hide the sarcasm in my voice.
When we pull into a restaurant, there aren't any cars in the parking lot. I look at her as she's getting out. I'm not sure what her game is and I'm not going to lie, I'm scared. Following her inside, there's Gavin and Katy in the booth waiting for us.
"What's up?"
Gavin slightly shakes his head and I have a feeling this isn't going to be good.
Zara has me sit down and the lights get dim. "So, I decided to do things a little differently tonight."
"Zara, you sure you want to do this?" Gavin asks, with urgency in his voice.
"I'm a cold hearted bitch. Remember?"
"Once you do this, you might not be able to take it back, babe."
"Fine with me." Zara tells them.
Soon, a few blondes line up and I recognize each of them. She's not fucking doing this.
"So these are some of the girls tainted and hurt by our awesome Treston over here." I plead with Zara not to do this. She ignores me. "Go on girls, tell him how he's made you feel."
The first blonde talks, "You made me feel stupid. I walked in when you were talking to your friends and heard you tell them I was only good for a quick blow. That hurt. I really liked you."
The second blonde talks, "I knew who you were when we met. I didn't think you'd be that cold. We were having fun at the club then you up and left. I didn't have a ride home and didn't have cash on me. My friends left and my phone died. I was stranded. You made me feel like shit, Treston."
Before the third girl talks, I get up and yell, "Stop. I am sorry I did that to you girls, but please just stop." I turn to Zara, "Are you happy?"
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A flicker of something is in her eyes. Does she feel bad? Guilty? Because if she's feeling anything, this girl has the best poker face. "Yes."
I don't say anything else. Instead, I walk out the door and open the car door to get my clothes. I'm sick of this shit. If she wanted to hurt me tonight and make me feel like shit, well she did it.
I give Jackson a call, asking him to pick me up. I kick the stones with my shoe trying to figure out what I should do. I know she's trying to push me away and hurt me so I'll leave her alone. These games of hers aren't working.
I hear a door open and close, hoping it's her. When I turn around, I see Peony walking to me.
"Hey. Sorry about tonight. I didn't know what she was doing. I just knew I wanted to be near you." Her fingers trace a line from my lips down to my chest. For one night, I want to forget. Just one night. I've been miserable without her and tonight shows that I might not get her back anytime soon. If ever.
"You know the score."
She nods, "I do." Licking her lips, I take her hand and take her to the back of the restaurant. This will be quick and for a few minutes, I can forget about her. Peony pushes me against the wall and I let her do whatever she wants. I feel her lips on my neck and she creeps up to my lips.
"No kissing," I tell her. "You know this."
"Sorry," she whispers and slowly gets down on her knees.
"I guess some things never change." I turn my head to see Zara staring at me. I see the tears in her eyes and run to her, not giving a fuck about Peony.
Catching up to Zara, I stand in front of her with my hands in the air. I hope she stops and listens to me. I need her to listen. "I'm sorry." I quickly say. "I'm sorry, okay?" I place my head in her hands, breathing her in, hoping she'll give me back the broken part of me to make us whole again.
"I didn't mean to interrupt you. I'll let you get back to her." I don't let her leave.
"No. I need you to stay, okay?" I snap at her. "You intentionally tried hurting me tonight and it worked, Zara. I've been fighting off the skanks since you've been gone, but tonight, tonight fucking gutted me. I thought since you bid on me, we would have a chance to talk." I push down the tears. "I want us to talk."
