Always You

by Missy Johnson

  “I never do,” I shot back.

  ***

  As I approached the house I adjusted my black sweater and my leather jacket, trying to steady my nerves. I wasn’t a shy person by any means, but this was my first real job and I felt intimidated. I walked up the path leading to the porch and knocked on the door. Dan answered. He flashed me a grin.

  “Dalton, good to see you again. Come in.” He ushered me inside, patting me on the back. I followed him through to the patio out the back where the rest of the staff had gathered. “Can I get you a drink?” he asked, raising his eyebrows.

  Dan was one of those guys I’d instantly liked when we’d first met. He was the type of guy who everyone liked. He was funny, social, friendly, and he worked hard—complete with stupidly long hours—in his job as head of the Engineering department at Hallbrook University, just a few towns over.

  “Sure, just a soda will be fine, thanks.”

  This was one of those occasions where I wished I drank, just to calm my nerves. I stood awkwardly, smiling at anyone who made eye contact with me while I waited for Dan to return. I felt out of place, like the new kid in the playground. I’d literally spoken no more than a few words to these people. Some of them I didn’t even recognize. Layna spotted me and waved me over.

  At forty-two—the same age as Mom—Layna was tall, slim, and attractive. Her shoulder-length blonde hair was cut into a sharp bob that framed her angular face. Her piercing brown eyes made her look harsh—like someone you wouldn’t want to cross. In reality, she was one of the most sincere, understanding people I’d ever met.

  “Dalton.” She smiled, touching my arm. “How are you settling in? Glad the week is over, I bet.”

  “Yeah, I’m loving it, but happy the weekend is here,” I chuckled. Yes, a lie, but telling my boss how I really felt probably wasn’t a great career move.

  “Good to hear. Grab yourself a drink and mingle.”

  She took off, already talking to someone else before I could respond. Glancing around for Mark, I saw him standing by the bar, talking with the English teacher, Gary. I slipped out the door, trying to remember where the bathroom was from last week.

  After I’d finished, I headed back toward the patio. Passing what looked like a living room, I heard the unmistakable sounds of Alfred Hitchcock’s The Birds playing. I stopped and smiled.

  God, I wish I was in there watching movies instead of trying to impress a bunch of strangers. I pushed the door open and ventured inside.

  Wrenn sat sprawled out on a large leather recliner. Her eyes widened when she saw me. She sat upright, straightening her skirt. My eyes were drawn to her bare calves as she tucked them under her thighs.

  “Mr. Reid,” she said, her lips curving into a smile. She pointed to the TV. “Sorry, is it too loud?”

  I jumped at the sound of her voice, forcing myself to focus on her face.

  Great, now I feel like a creep.

  But I was a twenty-three-year-old guy, and she was a pretty teenage girl who was only a few years younger than me. It was in my DNA to appreciate that.

  “No, not at all,” I replied, stepping further into the room. “And call me Dalton. We’re not in class. Anyway, I was just passing, and I had to see who was watching one of my favorite movies.”

  “You’re a Hitchcock fan?” She grinned, her face lighting up.

  “More of a classic horror film buff,” I said, sitting down on the edge of the leather armchair nearest to the door.

  “Really? So am I. Nothing better than a horror movie that actually focuses on the story, you know? All the horror flicks these days seem to just be slash, blood, and gore.” She shuddered and shook her head.

  I laughed. She was right. Horror films today had nothing on their older counterparts; it just wasn’t an argument I was used to hearing from someone under the age of fifty.

  “So, I didn’t realize you were going to be here,” I said casually. There was really no polite way of asking her what the hell she was doing here.

  She blushed. “Layna is my aunt. I live with her. That’s why I’m at this school,” she explained.

  “Wow, I didn’t know that,” I said.

  Wrenn looked at me strangely.

  “My mom and Layna are old friends. They went to school together,” I explained.

  “Then your mom probably knew my mom,” she said quietly. Her eyes dropped.

  I’d obviously hit a nerve, and I noticed her use of past tense when talking about her mom. What happened?

  “So, how do you like it here? A bit of a change from what you’re used to?” she asked, a less than subtle change of subject.

  I laughed. “Different is an understatement. I thought I knew what to expect. Honestly, the reality is so much worse,” I said. “I’d forgotten how many hormones teenage girls have.”

  And there was something to add to my list of things not to say to my teenage student.

  “Forgotten?” she teased. “Weren’t you just in college, like, last year? Didn’t they have teenage girls there?” She bit her lip to keep from smiling, her green eyes sparkling.

  “You’re right, but it wasn’t my job to control them,” I said, laughing.

  “Yes, and they seem to go even crazier all cooped up in boarding school.” She rolled her eyes. “This is my outlet,” she added, gesturing to the TV. “Horror movies. It’s a good escape. And often less scarier than reality,” she quipped.

  “If you like this you should try and get your hands on Dawn of the Dead. That’s one of the best horror movies of all time,” I said, ignoring how nerdy I sounded.

  “Thanks for the tip,” she said with a grin. “You better get back.” She pointed to the door, her eyes piercing me. “They’ll come looking for you.”

  “Yeah. I should,” I muttered. Even though I’d much rather stay in here. “I guess I’ll see you on Monday?”

  “I guess you will. ‘Night, Dalton.”

  Chapter Five

  Wrenn

  My pulse quickened as he walked into the room. God, he was driving me insane and he didn’t even know it. Like right now, for instance: his ass in those jeans…

  Sigh. That was probably the best thing about being a girl—I didn’t have to worry about trying to hide an erection in the middle of class. I didn’t know how boys did it. He set his briefcase down on his desk, flinging it open and taking out a stack of papers. Glancing around the room, he smiled.

  “Good morning. Did we all have a good weekend?”

  Murmurs filled the room. I was too busy staring at him to answer. His gaze swept past me, and for a moment I thought I saw a smile. Had that been for me? Was he thinking about running into me at Layna’s?

  Seeing Dalton out of class on Friday had been amazing. Sure, it had only been a five-minute conversation, but he’d treated me like a person. Every other teacher here knew my story, and all I ever got from them were sympathetic glances and those tiny little smiles that say “I’m not going to tell you how sorry I am for you, but I feel so sorry for you.”

  Ugh. It was like I couldn’t escape my past, no matter how badly I wanted to. Thank God none of the other students knew—not even Kass.

  The last thing they needed was more ammunition to use against me. The days they ignored me were best; I could handle that. It was the days they decided to pick on me relentlessly that were the worst. By ‘they,’ I meant Paige, but if she was targeting you, then everyone followed. It was sad, really.

  It was amazing what a sexy, young, hot male teacher could do for your motivation levels. In the few months I’d been at this school, nobody had paid attention quite like they did in Mr. Reid’s presence.

  I studied the cause of this phenomenon as he waffled on about…honestly? I had no idea what he was talking about right then, and I was pretty sure every other student in the room felt the same way. He wasn’t just attractive, he was down right freaking hot. Surely there was a law against a guy this gorgeous teaching teenage girls? This was a form of torture. But all the s
ame, I’d take it. Yep. I could get used to this.

  I sat back, my eyes on him as he took in the room. Again, I swear he smiled as his gaze swept past me. I couldn’t have imagined that twice.

  “How did everyone do with the homework I assigned?” he asked, sitting on the edge of his desk.

  That’s right, in my moment of appreciating the swooniness of my teacher, I’d forgotten we had an assignment due—just like the rest of the class had. The sound of papers rustling filled the silence as everyone dug through their folders. I pulled my three-page summary on the Magna Carta and passed it toward the front.

  Out of the corner of my eye I saw Paige glance at me, then whisper something to her sidekick, Deena. They both giggled. I forced myself not to react. As much as I pretended I didn’t care, it still hurt. Nobody wants to be the outcast.

  You don’t wake up in the morning and think to yourself, “Gee I hope they’ve vandalized my locker again today,” or, “I hope they try and frame me for cheating on another test.” I have no idea what I did to make Paige hate me so much, but whatever it was, in her mind it must have been big.

  The rest of the period went quickly. I suppose time flies when you’re not really listening. There were perks to repeating my senior year. Well, I wasn’t really repeating, I guess. After the accident, it took me a long time to recover—both physically and mentally. Some things that were covered here I’d already covered in my old school, and some things I hadn’t. It all depended on the syllabus. Either way, it would help me get the grades I needed to secure my place in prelaw at Boston University, and it meant I could graduate midyear.

  The bell sounded, scaring the daylights out of me. My heart was still pounding as Mr. Reid dismissed us. As I packed up my things and began to walk out, he called me over.

  “Wrenn, can I see you for a moment?” he asked casually. I nearly fainted.

  Calm down, Wrenn. He probably wants to tell you off for not listening in class.

  I smirked at Paige, who was giving me a death stare. I watched her flounce out of the room, knowing I’d probably be paying for that later.

  Approaching the desk, I waited as he reached into his briefcase and pulled out a DVD. He handed it to me and I took it curiously, my fingers brushing past his as they wrapped around the hard plastic casing.

  Holy shit.

  I forced myself to focus on the DVD and not the electricity pulsating through my veins from his touch. Did he feel that? God forbid if he ever actually touched me—I’d probably orgasm on the spot. I studied the cover of the DVD.

  Dawn of the Dead

  “Ah, this is the one you were talking about?” I asked, suddenly excited. I flipped it over to read the back.

  He nodded, his eyes studying my reaction.

  I grinned, secretly happy that he had remembered me.

  “If you can handle this one, then I have a few others that are pretty good too.”

  I raised my eyebrows at him. “You think I’m going to hide under the bed or something?” I teased him. “All I watch is horror movies, Mr. Reid. I’m pretty sure I can handle this little thing.” I winked at him.

  He laughed, running his hand through his hair, that beautiful smile appearing on his face. Ugh, he was making me weak at the knees.

  Wrenn, say something else! I opened my mouth, and then closed it again. Great, now I look like a freaking goldfish.

  “Okay, well, we’ll see. I mean, this makes The Birds look like a comedy.”

  “Uh-huh,” I said, still not convinced. I pushed the DVD into my backpack and smiled at him. “Well, thanks. Maybe I’ll see you tomorrow at my aunt’s?” I said, raising an eyebrow.

  “Maybe,” he murmured, holding my eye contact.

  ***

  “So, what did he want?” pressed Kassia.

  I laughed. I was barely out of the door when she pounced on me.

  “Did you see Paige? Pissed off, is all I can say. You better watch your back.”

  “He just wanted to see how much of the syllabus I’d already covered in my old school,” I fibbed. I didn’t like lying to Kass, and I wasn’t even sure why I did. All I knew was that I felt like I wanted to keep our little connection to myself—for a while, at least.

  Kassia looked disappointed. “Is that all?” she said, glumly.

  “What were you expecting? That he swept the junk off his desk and threw me down?” I snorted.

  Kass grinned at me. “Well, I like that idea. Not only the idea of him doing that to you, but me doing that to you. Or maybe both him and me.”

  I shoved her playfully, knowing she was messing around. She had a girlfriend, Trina, who she’d been with for the last six months. Trina didn’t go to Tennerson. She went to a public school in town, which was part of the reason Kass didn’t live on campus this year.

  Kass’s parents were very cool. They accepted her sexuality, and loved Trina, and me, like we were part of the family. Which felt good. Especially those times when I missed my own family, so much. Layna was great, but she reminded me so much of my mother that when I was at my most down it was hard to be around her. If you’d seen them side by side, you’d pick right away that they were sisters. They had shared the same blonde hair and brown eyes. Both Jordan and I had taken after my dad, and Mom had hated that. She used to say she felt left out, because we all looked so alike.

  “Come on. Let’s get out of here. I’ll have you back in time for dinner.” She linked her arm through mine. I nodded my agreement and whipped out my phone to text Layna and let her know where I was going.

  As we reached the parking lot, we were confronted by Paige, Deena, and Stacie, all three of them blocking our path. Paige stood in front, hands on her hips, her lip curled up in disgust

  “Well if it isn’t the two lesbian lovers,” she sneered, as the other two girls giggled. Apparently anyone who spent time with Kass was a lesbian by association. Kass stepped forward until she was almost nose to nose with Paige.

  “Get out of my way now, Paige.”

  “Or what? What are you going to do, Kass? Run off and cry into the arms of your little lover?” She thrust her finger toward me.

  I shook my head, anger boiling inside of me. This girl was such a nasty piece of work. I tapped Kass on the shoulder. “Come on. She’s not worth it. Let’s just go,” I muttered, glaring at Paige.

  “Yeah, listen to your girlfriend and run away, dyke.”

  Kass began to laugh as Paige stared at her, shocked. “You know what I think, Paige? I think deep down, you want me. I think you lie in bed at night imagining my fingers inside of you, teasing you. I think you’re aching to feel my tongue sliding between your legs, and you know you’ll never have me.” She smiled sweetly and grabbed my hand, walking around the three of them, giggling to herself.

  “That was brilliant,” I cried as soon as we were out of sight. “Fucking awesome, Kass. You told her!” Secretly, I wished I had that kind of confidence. I’d love to take Paige down a peg or two.

  Chapter Six

  Wrenn

  As I glanced out the window of Kass’s Jeep, I thought about my future. And my past. And how I couldn’t wait to leave this place.

  “What made you decide to stay at Tennerson’s?” I asked her. “I mean, I hate it but I don’t have a choice. I know your parents would let you move if they knew how much shit Paige and her skanks put you through.”

  Kassia glanced at me. The urge to ask her that had come out of nowhere, and surprised us both.

  “They’re not as bad as they used to be.” She shrugged. “Besides, Tennerson’s is the best prep school in the state. If I want to retain my acceptance at Harvard, then I have to stick it out. I don’t give a shit about those girls. I couldn’t care less what they think of me. They are going to get a harsh reality check next year when they go to the university where daddy bought them their place, and they realize they’re not the top shit anymore.”

  Wow. I wish I were that confident in myself.

  I hated that I let what othe
rs thought get to me. I never used to be like that. It was like the accident had killed all my self-esteem.

  I couldn’t wait to get to college. I felt as though, right then, I was in limbo—waiting for my life to begin. Everything I thought I knew about life and love was gone, yet I couldn’t move forward just yet. Or maybe I didn’t want to move forward?

  Moving on meant accepting that the past was never going to change. I wouldn’t be having any more late night chats with Mom about the boys I was crushing on. Or having her comfort me when my heart got broken. I wouldn’t have another argument with Jordan, or see him graduate from high school. And Dad wouldn’t be there to walk me down the aisle on my wedding day. None of my family would be there to see me marry the man of my dreams. Moving forward was terrifying, and at the same time exciting. I was so scared of forgetting, yet desperate for closure. No wonder I felt so damn confused.

  “Don’t let her get to you, Wrenn. You’re so much better than her. Remember that.” Kassia gave me a smile as she turned the car into the parking lot. Of course she thought this was all about Paige. She didn’t know about my past.

  “Am I that obvious?” I asked, making a face.

  She laughed and nodded.

  “I know, you’re right. I’ll work on it,” I promised, wishing it were that easy.

  ***

  We met Trina in Starbucks. I stood in line to get our orders while the other two found a booth—and each othe,r it seemed. They certainly weren’t shy about displaying their affection in public. They’d caught the attention of every guy in the place—two pretty schoolgirls making out? Who’d have thought?

  Smirking, I turned back around to face the counter. The guy standing ahead of me turned.

  It was Mr. Reid. Dalton.

  “Hey,” I said, tapping him on the arm. “Fancy meeting you here.”

  “Wrenn.” His face lit up. He rolled his eyes at the line in front of us. “There’s nothing I hate more than waiting. It’s almost enough to make me walk out, but unfortunately my caffeine addiction wont let me.”