Through the Pain (Whitsborough Chronicles Book 1)

by C. A. Rene

  “I’d love to sit with you.” I say, meaning it.

  He nods and pulls out a chair for me, I swoon a little. Every girl wants to be treated like a lady and Travis seems the perfect gentleman. Which has me conflicted because of what Adri has said. So, I decide I’m not going to judge him until I know him and get his side.

  “I’m not going to lie to you, I’ve heard some things about you that aren’t so nice.” I say quietly to him.

  “Okay… well, I guess my first question would be from whom? Vincent or Adrianna?”

  “I haven’t spoken to Vince about you, just Adri.” I reply. I don’t want to sell her out completely so I’m not going to tell him exactly what she said.

  “That situation is complicated. I’m hoping one day we can clear it up, I don’t have anything bad to say about her, she’s amazing. The things she thinks I’ve done are severely misconstrued.” He says, sounding sad.

  “I see. I will help you, but only if I think it’s worth it. She’s been great with me today, and I don’t want to step where I don’t belong. I just have a feeling you both are sad.”

  He shrugs and turns to look out the window. The teacher comes and we start the class. I just can’t help but notice how dejected Travis looks.

  We talk about Pride and Prejudice and since it is one of my favourite books, I am participating quite a bit. Travis is watching me with a look I recognize all too well. Admiration mixed with lust. Each time my hand goes up he grins in my direction. All too soon class is done and I am packing up and getting ready for my final class of the day. All in all, this day was pretty good, much better than I anticipated.

  We are the last two left in the classroom.

  “Where to next for you?” Travis leans over a little too close to be considered just friendly. I roll with it; I’m still hoping my body catches up with my brain and realizes Travis is the best option.

  “Drama in the cathedral? I was going to ask you where that is.”

  “Drama?” He bites his lower lip, “Vin is in that class. Watch out for those drama guys.”

  “I can handle myself. Where is the cathedral?”

  “I’ll take you there. It’s the same direction as the gym, I have baseball last period.” He answers.

  “Cool, thank you.” I smile.

  He stares into my eyes and looks down to my mouth. He leans in close and wraps a piece of my hair around his finger.

  “You are stunning, Ember.” He breathes.

  “Thank you, Travis.” I whisper back, looking into his green eyes. After being up close and personal with both brothers I can see their eyes are a little different. Where Vin has a dark green outer circle and light moss green inside, Travis has all green with flecks of gold. Both sets are breathtaking.

  He leans in closer and I watch his eyes get heavy with want. Is he going to kiss me? I don’t pull away; I lean in as well. I must admit I am curious and I really want to see if there could be something. Our lips are less than an inch apart.

  “Can I…?” He whispers. I nod.

  He closes the gap and presses his lips gently to mine. There’s some heat but nothing amazing. He pulls back and I guess the disappointment shows on my face. He looks back and forth between my eyes with question. I don’t move and I look him straight in the eye.

  “Fuck it…” He breathes and crushes his mouth to mine. Now this is what I’m talking about. I lick my tongue along his bottom lip and he opens for me. Our tongues dance, our teeth clash, and I still feel like I’m not close enough.

  I press my body to his and he grabs my ass with both hands, pulling me into his hardness. I moan so deep at the contact and rub myself harder against him. He groans into my mouth and kisses me deeper, before I know it, he’s lifted me up onto the table and steps between my legs. He pulls me forward and presses himself against my center, I’m so wet it’s embarrassing.

  The ringing bell pulls us out of our stupor. I cover my mouth with my hand and sharply inhale. What just happened? Travis can kiss! I’m so worked up and shaking. I’m not turned on by meek and quiet Travis but I am completely turned on by take charge aggressive Travis.

  “That was the warning bell,” he says quietly, “we should get you to the cathedral.”

  I nod and lick my lips. His eyes darken and he steps between my legs again.

  “Don’t do that.” He says squeezing my thigh.

  “What?” I ask huskily.

  He groans and presses his lips to mine again biting my lower lip lightly. He gently lifts me off the table and places me on my feet. He pulls away and shakes his head.

  “Let’s go Aphrodite.” He turns quickly and starts for the door.

  I laugh and follow him out of the class.

  We leave the school and walk across a large running track. Travis points out the gym and the baseball field as well as the courts. Then he points to a church.

  “We have Mass in there once a month.” He says.

  “Mass? Like a church service on Sunday?” I ask surprised.

  “Yeah, exactly.” He nods. “Drama is also held in there on the top floor. It’s large with a stage and lots of windows.”

  “I’ve never been to Mass.” I say more to myself.

  “Never?” He asks and I shake my head no.

  “I’ll take you to one if you want. This Sunday?” He asks looking a little bashful. “I know your uncle. He and my dad go golfing together. So, can I pick you up?”

  “I’d like that. Thank you.”

  He shrugs and stops in front of a pair of ornate doors. “Straight inside, there’s a set of stairs to the left. Go up two floors and you will come to the rotunda.”

  “Thanks again.” I say.

  He smiles and leans in to kiss my cheek, then turns and walks back in the direction of the gym. I’m about five minutes late by the time I reach the rotunda but it was so worth it.

  The classroom is full and it looks like I’m the last to enter. The teacher is a middle-aged eccentric looking woman with big bottle cap glasses and frizzy hair.

  “Emberlise Craven, I presume?” She asks in a nasally voice.

  “Yes ma’am, sorry I’m late. I was kept behind in my last class to catch up a bit.” Not a complete lie.

  “That’s just fine, Emberlise.” She says waving me off. “Take a seat.”

  I look around and everyone is either lounging on cushions on the floor or sitting on couches. I spot vin on a couch with Danny in the corner. He crooks his finger, beckoning me to him. I put a seductive smile on my face and start towards him, he is so good looking it hurts. I watch as his tongue darts out to lick his full bottom lip and notice a gleam of metal. Huh, Vin has a tongue ring. I don’t even want to tell you about the dance my vagina just did.

  Danny smirks seeing my face and nudges Vin with his elbow. I’m still not over what happened at lunch. If Vin really wanted me to sit with him he wouldn’t have entertained Pepto. To say I’m irritated and slightly jealous would be an understatement. Vin’s grin widens the closer I get to him and I sway my hips a little more running my finger along the top of my cleavage.

  Then I plop my ass down on an over sized cushion and direct my attention to the teacher, who is babbling to a student about the upcoming play.

  “What the hell...?” I hear Vin whisper.

  I drop my face to look at my kilt and hide my smirk. He’s going to have to learn he needs to work for me. I won’t be some playboy’s toy for a week. Plus, Travis has occupied my thoughts. Am I into him? I guess if I really must ask, its a no. The attraction is there and I know my body ignored my brain when his mouth and hands were on me, but I think that’s the extent of it. Unfortunately, his brother causes the same reaction with just a glare. It looks like just friends for Travis and me, I will have to tell him before our church date this Sunday.

  “Miss Craven, did you perform at your last school?” The nasally voice interrupts my thoughts.

  “Yes, I did. I had quite a few leads including Juliet and Fantine. I have prepared a list
of the plays I participated in and the dates for you.” I pull out the sheets from my bag. “Also, I put which ones were recorded and uploaded to YouTube if you are interested to see further.”

  I bring the sheets to the front of the class and she smiles warmly at me, “It’s nice to see a student take this so seriously.”

  “I do, acting was always an outlet for me. I’m sorry, I didn’t catch your name?” I ask her.

  “You can call me Lisa. All my students do.”

  “Then please call me Ember.” I reply with a smile.

  I return to my seat as she looks over my sheets I handed to her. There are quite a few roles on there, I did more than just school plays. I did an actor’s workshop twice a week and every weekend and a summer camp as well.

  “This is truly impressive Ember and I look forward to your audition for the play we are preparing for. Lance here is our very talented screenplay writer and he has provided us with an original play for the end of the year.” Lance turns on his cushion to face me. He has long dirty blonde hair in a ponytail and he has thick glasses perched on his large hawk like nose. He waves at me with a genuine smile, so I wave back with one of my own.

  “As we are coming to the end of April we need to start auditions this week. I am going to hand out the play and I want each of you to read it over and decide who you want to audition for or if you want to be a stagehand.” She starts handing out booklets. “Afterwards, I want you to pair up and read lines together.”

  I receive a booklet and read the title page. ‘The shortest Summer’ by Lance Hawkins. I start reading and it is good. It is very good. The play is about two high school students who are from different groups in high school and also different walks of life. They fall in love during the summer months only to go back to school and break up. Its sad and lovely at the same time. I’m so engrossed in my reading that I don’t hear him approach, but my body senses him. I look up into green eyes that look clouded with irritation.

  “Hey.” I say to him.

  “Hey... I was hoping...” He shuffles from foot to foot.

  “Vin sit, you’re making me nervous with your stuttering and shuffling.”

  “I didn’t stutter.” He retorts as he sits beside me.

  “Yeah you did, I was embarrassed for you.” I say with a chuckle.

  “Why didn’t you sit with me at lunch?” So, he’s a straight shooter and I like that. That’s why I decide to be just as upfront.

  “I won’t be a plaything, Vin. I’ve heard about you and I can see you and how you are with your group. You’re a player and that’s great I won’t tell you not to be or anything, it’s just not my thing.”

  “Plaything? That’s a little presumptuous, don’t you think?” He leans in closer, his breath fanning my neck. My pussy clenches.

  Fuck, I’m screwed.

  “I haven’t even decided if I like you yet.” He whispers.

  “Don’t try to play me Vin and we can be friends.” I reply.

  “I have a lot of friends already.”

  “Then why exactly are you sitting next to me?” I huff.

  “My mother told me to play nice with you.” A light bulb goes off, this is Sharla’s son.

  I don’t bother to answer him and I go back to reading the script, hoping the lack of conversation makes him leave.

  “I am auditioning for Miguel.” He says, I guess he’s not leaving. “I want you to be Claire or I won’t do it.”

  Claire and Miguel are the leading roles, Claire being the uptight, straight A student. Doesn’t do anything she shouldn’t and is top of her grade in school. Miguel is the bad boy who runs with a gang and skips school. They both end up working at the same cinema during the summer and fall for each other.

  “Is that an ultimatum, why would I care if you aren’t the lead?” I ask him.

  “It’s not about you, it’s Lance. He approached me and said he wrote this play with me in mind as Miguel. He would be so disappointed to learn I won’t do it.”

  “I won’t be strong armed into a role. I need to feel it. So, you can take your idle threats elsewhere, if I want the role I will audition for it.” I stare him down.

  “You’re not like other girls.” He says with a huff.

  “Like I said Greene, I had you pegged from the moment I first saw you.” I look him right in the eye, “word of advice, maybe you should just stick to the other girls.”

  To be honest the role of Claire did stand out to me, and I knew I would audition for it. I just wasn’t letting him force me into it. He can wait until auditions to see what I choose. The last bell of the day rings and I realize I am tired but also excited to talk to Adri.

  “I’ll walk you to your locker.” Statement, not a question.

  “Sure.” I shrug.

  Danny walks up at that moment with a shit eating grin on his face. “Hey loser,” he says looking at Vin. “Are you coming to my house after school or going on a date?”

  He winks at me. I’ve seriously had enough.

  “Do you have an eye problem? I hear one of the symptoms of eye gonorrhoea is incessant twitching.” I say, nodding sympathetically. “You should really get that checked out.”

  He looks at me speechless, “Also, Daniel, if I were you I would keep your winking and suggestive smirks to yourself, I’ve brought down bigger men.”

  He shakes his head and walks off muttering to himself. Vin’s face lights up with the biggest grin yet, fuck he’s pretty. “You have a sharp tongue, Em.”

  “My fists are pretty sharp too, Vince.” I reply with a sweet smile.

  “I’m really starting to believe that.”

  He grabs his bag and we head down the stairs together in silence. It’s nice and not uncomfortable. I like to be able to be with someone without the feeling of needing to fill the empty spaces.

  We walk through the field and I see Travis batting. He has no shirt on and his body is sculpted perfection. I stop to watch a bit. He is a really good player.

  “I can’t help but hate him. We have the same blood running in our veins but I could never accept him.” Vin says, watching Travis.

  “Hate is a strong word. I feel like it should be used in situations most deserving. Has he done something to you personally to cause such hatred?” I ask Vin.

  “Yeah, he was born.” He turns and walks away leaving me on the field alone.

  I drop off my stuff at my locker and grab what I need for my homework tonight. I feel disappointed again that Vin just brushed me aside and forgot about me. I would’ve really liked to speak to him a bit more.

  I get to my car and Adri is leaning against the passenger side. I smile at her and unlock the doors so we can climb in.

  “This ride is so fucking sweet.” She purrs running her fingers along the dashboard.

  “I kissed Travis today, it was so hot and I wanted to fuck him senseless at the time. But afterward I was thinking that I don’t have any real feelings for him beyond physical attraction. So, I am going to tell him we can just be friends.” I rush out.

  I need to be honest with her, especially if what I suspect she feels is true.

  “Oh wow.” She breathes and looks at me. “Why did you feel the need to tell me that?”

  “Because I think you have actual feelings for him. I just needed you to hear it from me.”

  “Thank you for telling me.” She whispers.

  “Are we okay?”

  “Yes, very much okay. I’m really glad you were honest with me. That isn’t easy.” She says her eyes watering.

  “Its my policy.”

  “I think we need some ice cream floats, and I believe I owe you a juicy story.” She smirks at me.

  “Tell me where to go missy.”

  Chapter Four

  Adri directs me to a little Mom and Pop diner. It has retro fifties décor and booths designed like the interior of a car. It’s so freaking awesome. The music is all fifties and they even have a girl and guy on rollerblades taking orders. I fucking love it.


  As we sit in front of our ice cream floats and funnel cakes, I patiently wait for Adri to tell me about the Greene brothers.

  “I don’t even know where to begin, I guess I will start with my friendship with Travis.” She starts, “He and I were in the same preschool, we didn’t get along at all. There was hair pulling, toy stealing and pant dropping.” I laugh along with her.

  “For JK his parents started him at some prestigious school for the rich and we were separated. Travis really kicked up a stink everyday for a whole month. The teachers were tired of him and his parents finally caved and sent him to the school I was in. We were inseparable ever since.” She sighs and take a sip of her float. “Vin also went to that school, and that was when Travis learned this other boy had his last name.”

  “What?” I say shocked. “They didn’t know about each other?”

  “No, they didn’t.” She shakes her head. “Their father is a grade A jerk. He got Sharla pregnant senior year high school and just four months later he got his now wife pregnant in college.”

  “Oh my gosh!”

  “Yep, so he leaves Sharla-well, Bobby says he broke up with Sharla before knowing-and goes off to college, but Sharla insists she told him and he was off to college so he could provide for their new family. Then he meets Catherine in college and just doesn’t come home for a few years.” She shrugs. “Sharla says he called her and tried to convince her to have an abortion but she was already six months. Sick, I know.”

  “I have no words.”

  “During elementary school Vin and Travis got along, they hung out at recess and they played t-ball together all the time. Mind you the mothers just ignored the situation completely and acted like it didn’t exist.” She takes a drink of her float and fiddles with the straw. “I was a part of the group. They were my best friends, too. Travis and I were closer because we lived closer to each other, but Vin was our school best friend for sure.”

  The waitress comes to the table then, “Hey girls, I have a guy at the counter that insists on paying for your bill. I came by to tell you.” She smiles and sashays away.