I got to see it all.
Two thugs in a side alley pummelling the shit out of the cafe manager. It was my only warning to get the hell out of town, but I didn’t need any more of a sign than that.
I know for a fact that there’s no way that weasel would’ve lasted more than ten seconds before giving me up. I ran back home before I could hear anymore. I needed all the head start that I could get. I knew Ramone would be mad when he didn’t get his payment last week, but I didn’t think he’d send his goons after me right away.
Not even a phone call. I’ve known the guy for a long time, I would’ve thought we’d had more of a rapport than that.
I shove my charger in my bag and look around to see if I need anything else before pulling on the zipper. I don’t bother locking the door behind me. If the place is going to get trashed anyway, what’s the point in ruining a perfectly good door.
I make my way out into the street, looking both ways before I step out onto the sidewalk. I walk quickly, purposefully, down the block to the alley that cuts through it. Away from the coffee shop — no point in going to the one place Ramone’s boys expect me to be.
I pull my phone out of my pocket. Tyler’s meant to be meeting me at the bus station. I’m gonna be early at this rate, but I’d rather I was there early than late. Better early than dead. I’d hoped that Tyler would have texted by now, that he’d be there already. Ready and waiting, my good ol’, faithful big brother. I should have felt bad for always leaning on him. He’d gotten me out of so many scrapes. But isn’t that what family was for?
Not as far as Ivy was concerned, I guess, but she was always different. Me and Ty, we were good.
I walk with my hood up and head down for a few blocks before I need to take another alley. It was narrow and shadowy, and alarm bells that hadn’t stopped ringing all morning were screaming in my brain. I take the alley anyway, losing my nerve halfway and jogging the rest of it.
Don’t be such a fucking idiot, Stefan, I chide myself. I reach the end of the alley and walk into the sunlight. The bus station was just ahead. I’d be getting on a Greyhound and out of this shitty town faster than Ramone could catch up with me. I was almost there. I looked left and right. Nothing suspicious, but no Tyler either…
Silently, I curse to myself. Where was he? It was almost time for us to meet. We had agreed! He hadn’t stood me up, had he?
Hands shaking, I fumbled in my pocket for my cigarettes. I dropped the box on the ground, cursed, and bent down to pick it up. A shadow crossed my vision, and as I straightened, I bumped into someone.
“Sorry, man,” I said reflexively, beginning to turn away. A meaty hand grabbed my shoulder and spun me back around. “Hey, man, I said sorry.”
Someone screams as the fist collides with my face like a freight train. I stagger back into another body, twice the size of mine. Someone else yells angrily, and for a moment, I think it’s Tyler to the rescue. But no one intervenes as the two of them steer me away.
They march me back to the other side of the street, towards the alley I just came out of. One moves in front, quick for such a big guy, and I see the way he’s holding his hand inside his coat. Telling me, but at the same time not telling me that he has a gun, and he’ll use it if I try to run. Shit.
“Look, fellas,” I say, free hand up and defensive, placating. “Whatever you think I’ve done? You got the wrong guy.”
“Where you runnin’ to?” the one in front asks. The other has a tight grip on my arm, but I bet it just looks like he’s helping me walk along to anyone walking by.
“Weekend break. Just heading out of town.” I try to shrug, but Meathead Two has too firm a grip on me. “See the sights, y’know.”
“What? Has Memphis not got good enough sights for you?” Meathead Two asks, shaking my arm.
“Memphis?” I echo. My mind is reeling. These don’t seem like Ramone’s kind of thugs, but I don’t think they’re Ivy’s either… “Memphis is great, but you know how it is. Sometimes a new place—”
“Cut the bullshit, Stefan,” says the one with the gun. “We want the money you owe us, and we want it today. We spent long enough looking for your scrawny ass.”
“Money? What are you talking about?” I ask them, but even I can hear the lie in the waver of my voice. My heart is pounding in my chest, and I’m starting to feel sick. It’s not just the withdrawal that has me on edge. I haven’t got what they want. I spent it on blow, on pills, and on whatever else I could get my hands on.
The one with the gun snarls. “Don’t play games with me, boy. Durk might play along and take your bullshit, but I sure as shit won’t.”
“Okay, okay. You can let go of me, I’m not gonna run.” Once upon a time, that would have been a lie, but I know I can’t run from these guys. I might be able to outrun them, but I won’t outrun the bullets in that gun. And I don’t want to bet my life against Big Guy’s aim.
The one with the gun eyes me suspiciously, then gives Durk a nod. Durk, grudgingly, releases my arm.
“Let’s take a walk.”
Jessica
Peeking through the peephole, I unlatch the deadbolt and swing the door wide. Tyler’s tall frame does a good job of blocking my view of the street. The rain continues pattering down on the steps behind him. I hadn’t realized it was raining, but that would explain why the hood of Tyler’s jacket is up.
“Tyler? Did we have plans tonight?” My eyebrow rises in question. I’m confused. Tyler isn’t usually one to just drop by unannounced, or uninvited.
“No. Can I come in?” His voice is hoarse, his face lacking his usual smile. I bet if I leaned in I’d be able to smell alcohol on his breath.
I simply nod my head and step back. I’m not often home at this time of night — usually, I’m at work, but I was sick this morning, so I took the day off. Tyler follows me into the kitchen and slumps into one of the chairs that surround the dining table. I watch him closely from across the room as I fill a cup with water.
“You didn’t have plans, did you? I’d hate to be intruding.” He takes the cup from my outstretched hand and nods in thanks before taking a large drink. His head tilts back as he continues gulping down the water. His Adam’s apple bobs as he swallows and my eyes are locked to the movement.
The cup leaves his lips, but my eyes don’t. They linger to take in the sight of his tongue rolling over his bottom lip.
“No, no plans tonight. Is…” I hesitate, there’s an edge to him tonight that I’ve never seen before. “Is everything alright?”
“Fine, I just wanted to see you.” He places the cup on the worktop and looks me up and down. His eyes linger on the curve of my hips, then on my breasts before meeting my gaze. The heat in his eyes, the wanting, warms me to my core. Seized by a sudden wave of boldness, I pull my t-shirt off over my head and stand before him in just my shorts and bra.
“Take a look, then,” I say, stepping towards him.
“You’re so beautiful,” he whispers, stepping into my arms. Our lips collide. “So fucking beautiful.” His fingers fist in my hair as he holds me to his body. There’s a desperation in him like this is the last time we’re going to spend together. Something’s wrong, I know it, but I don’t want to press him if he doesn’t want to tell me.
His deft fingers torture me. Running up and down my naked sides. He’s not even there yet, and I’m ready to throw him on the bed. His hands move to grip my hips before sliding around to my ass. I twist out of his grip, grinning.
“Come on…” I move towards the bedroom, undoing my bra and tossing it to the ground, and wiggling out of my shorts, making sure he gets a good view of my ass as I do. I’m aching for him. At the bedroom door, I turn around. Tyler shrugs off his leather jacket and stalks closer. I narrow my eyes at his still covered chest, “Na-ah. That too.”
His mouth quirks up on one side in response before he rips the long sleeve tee over his head. I have to hold back a moan at the sight of him with his chest bare. His body is a piece of ar
t; I should be lucky no one has reported him to the museum as being stolen. I don’t think I could handle anyone but me seeing him like this.
I push back into the bedroom until I’m backed up against the bed. I flop down onto it, tits jiggling as I lie back and let him look at me again. But his steps take too long to reach me, instead, I sit up on the edge of the bed and reach for him. I can’t handle being so far away from him.
My breath hitches as our heated skin reconnects. I’m glad he can’t hear my thoughts. Although maybe he can, I don’t need to say anything before he’s pushing his jeans down his legs. He kicks them to the side as my hands pull down his boxer briefs, releasing the tell-tale bulge of his erection. I knew he wanted me, but I hadn’t realized I could turn him on so much without even touching him.
I slide off the bed and onto my knees in front of him. My mouth begins to water. I’m now the perfect height to take his thick cock between my lips. I start slow, kissing down the underside of his cock to his sack and sucking on one of his balls as my hand gently twists and turns the top of his penis. His shaved skin is soft and warm. Giving the other ball some love, I look up at his face. He’s staring down at me with an expression of wonder and want.
I rest my hands on the front of his hips, on the v of muscle that makes smart girls like me very, very stupid, and then kiss and lick my way back to his glans. I love the taste of him. I swirl my tongue around his tight frenulum and he lets out a groan of pleasure, closing his eyes. His fingertips brush my shoulders before he places his hands on my head, not pushing himself into me just yet.
Inhaling his clean, slightly musky scent, I move my mouth up and down on his cock, taking him deeper and deeper until he’s nudging the back of my throat. He groans again, stroking my hair gently. I pull back again, licking his tip and then pausing for a moment, before pushing forward and taking the full length of him into my throat.
His hands form fists in my hair and hold me down until I gag on him. He releases me and I pull back before taking him all in again.
“Shit…” he breathes and I feel his body go rigid. “You’re gonna make me…”
I pull back and give him a wicked grin. “Na-ah. Not yet.” I push myself back up onto the bed and pull him down to kiss me. He pushes me back slowly until I’m lying down again, with my knees at the edge of the bed. His cock bobs, glistening with my spit in the low light. Supporting himself above me on his elbows, he nudges my left leg with his knee and I know that he wants me to lift my legs up to let him in. I comply because I am oh-so-ready for this. I cry out as he slams into me. My walls stretch to accommodate the welcome intrusion. He pauses inside me, already breathing hard. I know he’s close. I don’t care about my orgasm right now, tonight is all about him.
“I want,” I murmur between kisses. “I want you to come for me,” I say as he pulls back and thrusts into me again and again.
“Don’t worry about that, baby, I’m not planning on doing anything else,” he whispers into my mouth. Seconds later, his rhythm changes, and I know he’s close again. I cross my ankles behind his waist and pull him tight to me as he explodes inside of me with a guttural grunt.
We fall asleep together, half tangled in the sheets, nestled in close. I don’t know what was bugging him, but I’m glad I got to distract him from it for at least a little while.
In the morning, he leaves almost before I am fully awake. He kisses my brow and is gone before I can protest.
* * *
“Look, I got you a test. Please... just take it. It may not be what you think it is, but either way, you need to know.” Sarah says as she discreetly slips a blue plastic bag into my hands.
Sarah is another receptionist at the Walton Hall Hotel. She started only a few months after I did, and I wouldn’t say we’re friends, but we’re friendly. We gossip about the guests when the boss isn’t around, we cover each other’s shifts and we occasionally share rides home. To put it simply, she would be the only person at the company Christmas party that I would actually enjoy talking to.
We’ve been behind the desk since six o’clock this morning. We’re not even halfway through our shift, and I’ve had to rush to the bathroom at least four times. Once or twice I probably could’ve gotten away with, but four times? That’s when people start to take notice.
The thought of what’s sitting in the blue bag that I’ve stashed away continues to haunt me for the rest of my shift, so much so that I feel like I’m going to be sick. My break finally comes around and I rush out the doors for some much needed fresh air. The smells… ugh! I then spend the rest of my break sitting in my car, having a very hard time convincing myself not to drive away. For the rest of my shift, I manage to hold the nausea at bay by nibbling on some crackers and keeping away from the kitchen.
Hours later, I crash through the door of the house with a yelp and a curse. My shopping bags go flying, but that’s my own fault for thinking that I could carry all seven of them at once. I risked it for the lazy sake of not wanting to walk all the way down the block, back to the car.
After putting my groceries away, I brought the small bag into my bathroom and left it on the counter. I leave it there and go to sit down on the couch. I can feel the box glaring at me from across the room and through the wall. It’s screaming at me, demanding my attention. For the last half hour, I’d been trying to distract myself, keeping myself occupied with chores that I normally avoid. I’ve dusted the top of the TV, fluffed the cushions on the couch, wiped down the kitchen counters twice. I have to take the goddamn test. I have to. I go back into the bathroom and pull out the instructions, leaving the actual test in the box. I unfold the instructions carefully, silently seething at the ridiculousness of this situation.
Yes, my period is late. But they’re so irregular that it’s difficult to tell whether or not I’m really, actually, for definitely late. But I’ve been feeling weird. And of course, I’ve been vomiting a bunch. I tried to tell myself it’s just a bug, but it’s a little difficult to convince myself of that when I know it’s mostly mornings and mostly strong smells that upset my stomach and give me headaches.
The instructions offer me a reprieve, however, when they tell me that pregnancy tests are best done in the morning, because of hormone levels. That’s fine. I can put this off another twelve hours. Whatever.
I curl up on the sofa with half a pot of ice cream. Strawberries and cream. I’ve been craving it all day, it’s one of my favorites, but then I spit out the first spoonful as my mouth fills with an overwhelming metallic taste. Pouting, I slam the pot back into the freezer.
“Early night it is, Jessica!” I say to myself as I sulkily walk into the bedroom and get under the covers.
This can’t be happening. It’s gonna be false, right? Or maybe it’s just the universe laughing in my face.
Tyler
A week has passed since I tried to bail out Stefan. For the first few days, he texted every day. Apologising, telling me it wasn’t his fault. He never once said what he was apologising for — always stopped replying when I asked and never picked up when I rang. But now I haven’t heard from him in three days. I’m trying not to worry about it — trying to put it out of my mind — but I just have this gut feeling that he’s already fucked again.
As I change gears in the car, I sigh. I like driving. Of course, I love riding my bike - nothing like the wind rushing against your entire body. But driving a car has its benefits too, like getting to think. Getting to clear my head. Being in the car, travelling along this road - it brings back so many childhood memories. The good ones, anyway.
My grandparents, the only ones I knew growing up, lived out in Kansas City. My brother, my sister, and I were sent to stay with them for two weeks every summer. Those weeks spent with nanna and poppa were worth so much more than the ones we spent at home with our parents.
It’s been a while since I’ve been out to visit their graves - too long. It was only this past Sunday, the anniversary of my nanna’s passing, that sparked the idea
for a road trip. Besides that, I feel like maybe this break is what I need — a day of clarity.
The urge to ask Jess to come with me was so strong. It could’ve been a lovely day out. Almost like a date, except I introduce her to my dead grandparents instead of taking her to a fancy restaurant. But the very idea was ludicrous, I can imagine Jess’ response, and it would’ve been a ‘no’. But maybe that’s a small mercy because she is part of the reason that I need some clarity in the first place: her and my brother. So, I didn’t bother asking. I packed a bag, filled my tank, and left.
It’s such a beautiful day to be on the road, warm and sunny with AC/DC playing on the stereo.
It all happens in slow motion, but I don’t see my life flash before my eyes like the movies would have you believe. I watch as it happens, knowing there’s nothing I can do.
The first thing I hear is the screeching metal on metal. The impact of another car hitting mine causes the car to swerve. Horns honk as other vehicles weave to avoid worsening the damage. To keep from going head-on into oncoming traffic, I yank the wheel in the opposite direction. Maybe amongst my panic, my turn is a bit too ferocious.
The car flips off the road and rolls side over side. Disappearing from the road and down the small drop alongside the hard shoulder of the highway. My vision goes black, then stars, then white. I feel my stomach lurch rollercoaster-style as I slam into the steering wheel — pain lances across my chest. Breathing hurts.
The car comes to a halt upside down. I hear the screech of tires on the road. Someone’s yelling, but my ears are ringing too loud for me to hear them clearly. Then there’s the hiss and crunch of footsteps coming through the long grass. I smell fuel. My fingers fumble numbly for my belt, my breathing hard but shallow. My vision is going black at the edges. Shit, shit, shit… I hear someone yelling about 911, then everything disappears into blackness.
Wicked Little Thing Page 4
