by Lisa Simmons
The entire ride home, I felt like I was on pins and needles. I was terrified of driving by someone I knew and give them the opportunity to read the ugly word plastered on my car, but I was fortunate enough to make it home without seeing a single car. I backed into a parking space in hopes that no one would see it before I could run inside and grab a rag. I jumped out of my car before dashing inside and grabbing the rattiest towel I could find. I prayed the paint, or whatever it was, would come off as I wet the towel and sprinted back outside. Luckily, the parking lot was fairly deserted as I moved to the back of my car. I inspected the red letters and was relieved to see it didn’t appear to be permanent paint. Upon scratching at it with a fingernail, it peeled fairly easily off the window.
With a sigh of relief, I started scrubbing at the glaring insult with the towel. It didn’t come off as easy as I had expected it too, but after several minutes of hard scrubbing and burning arms, I had the window cleared. I tried not to think about the fact that they had to have done it while I was at Reece’s, which would mean I had been inside his house, mere feet away from them while they snuck around and vandalized my car. I shivered in the quickly darkening night, casting a nervous glance around but seeing nothing before I darted back inside.
The second time I entered the apartment, I noticed Emily wasn’t there. After texting her, I discovered that she was at Chloe and Lauren’s but promised to be home later. It turned out to be very late, because by the time she got home, I was already in bed and nearly asleep while trying not to be resentful. I could have spent the night with Reece after all, it turned out, because my reason for coming home wasn’t even here. I heard her moving down the hall before closing the door to the bathroom and starting the shower. With a heavy sigh, I rolled over and decided to try and sleep. I fell asleep relatively quickly thanks to the lack of sleep from the previous night. Hours later, my alarm went off and I got ready for my classes. After several agonizing hours of class, they were finally over and it was finally time to get ready to go out. I called Reece on my drive home, and was pleased to discover he was actually semi-excited for our evening. We planned to, once again, start drinking at his house before heading downtown. When I got home, Emily was already in the process of getting ready. She lay sprawled out on the living room floor, painting her nails in the most peculiar position. She grinned at me when I entered and greeted me cheerfully.
“Abigail I am so excited for tonight,” she gushed, diverting her gaze back to her nails. I grinned, suspecting she had reason to be more excited for tonight in particular.
“That wouldn’t be because of a certain guy named Luke, would it?” I pressed, grinning smugly as I saw her reaction.
“Oh my god, I’ve been waiting to talk to you about this,” she blurted. “He is so hot.”
I laughed, pleased she finally seemed excited about a guy. Usually she was more into the one-and-done kind of thing, but I actually liked Luke and the thought of them potentially working something out made me happy. We spent the next two hours sitting on the floor, doing our nails, and talking about the potential between her and Luke. She occasionally asked me about Reece before inevitably bringing the conversation back to Luke, not that I minded. It was nice to talk about her boy issues for once instead of my own.
It was nearly six pm before we discovered the time. We both jumped off the floor to start getting ready for our night, a giddy excitement flooding through our apartment. After showering, doing our make up and hair and getting dressed, we were finally ready to travel to Reece’s and get the night started.
Only the memory of the ugly word plastered across the back of my car managed to bring my mood down slightly, the sight of my car parked allowing the memory to flash back up. A strange sense of foreboding flooded through me suddenly as we climbed into my car. A heavy nervousness settled in the pit of my stomach like a rock, and I was suddenly very wary of what could possibly happen tonight.
What had seemed like a simple cruel insult earlier now felt slightly like a warning or a threat, and I was almost certain by the time we got to Reece’s that something bad would happen tonight. It felt nearly inevitable that I would run into Jack or Samuel or both, and I prayed that if it did happen, it wouldn’t be anything I couldn’t handle. As we parked and walked up to Reece’s house, I tried to stem the uncertainty flowing through me, determined to stay positive until any actual evidence that I was right surfaced. With a final deep breath and a smile, we entered Reece’s house, determined to have a good time. "You push me, I don't have the strength to resist or control you, so take me down."
Chapter 46
Just as the last time Reece had allowed us to drink at his house, bodies were crammed inside. This time it seemed like there were even more people, and I wondered vaguely if he had invited them or if they'd just shown up. We were about to walk through when I heard my name shouted from behind me outside.
"Abigail! Emily!" I turned in sync with Emily, squinting into the quickly falling darkness as Chloe appeared with a wide grin. "Perfect timing, I just got here!"
"Hey, Chloe," I returned, relieved it was only my friend calling my name. She had agreed to meet us here because she'd been busy before. Now that we were all here, we moved through the door and took in the groups of people in front of us. My eyes immediately started searching for Reece.
I wanted to have fun tonight, but in order to do so, I needed to talk to him. After our fight it was clear to me I had to tell him about what I suspected Jack and Samuel had done. I didn't want to get in another fight over it, and I desperately hoped he wouldn't get too upset about it and start something.
"There's Luke, Chloe wanna meet him?" Emily said excitedly, a wide grin on her face.
"Don't get too crazy, Mags," I warned good-naturedly. "Reece said he doesn't really date so you don't wanna scare him off."
"Yeah, yeah, I know," Emily laughed, rolling her eyes playfully at me. "Let's go!"
With that, she dragged Chloe away from me to go meet Luke and left me to find Reece. I straightened up to try and see over the people crowding around but it was difficult. Trying to be as polite as possible, I pushed my way through everyone to search through the small house. It didn't take me long to find him, however, because as I rounded the corner into the kitchen I saw him almost immediately.
He was leaning against the counter with his arms folded across his chest. I was hit with the sudden memory of the first night I had seen him from across the party. He looked so casual, so cool, and so utterly above everyone else without even trying that I had to hold back from fanning myself. It was hard to believe that he was mine, and that he was in love with me. A wide grin stretched across my face as I took in the opportunity to watch him unabashedly.
My smile dropped from my face, however, when I saw a tiny hand fall onto his forearm. The tiny hand was connected to a ridiculously skinny arm that belonged to a girl I had never seen before. My facial expression changed so fast it was as if it physically fell as I glared at the girl. Who was she and why was she touching Reece? A blaze of pride flashed through me as he leaned away from her, a look of irritation clear on his face as she continued to attempt to capture his attention.
Her back arched forward as she pushed her chest out and batted her entirely too long fake eyelashes at him. He grimaced slightly as she leaned forward, and he shifted back even more before returning his attention to the other people around him. Before I knew what I was doing, my legs were carrying me forward into the kitchen where he stood. He saw me before anyone else, and a wide grin split across his face despite the girl still clinging to his arm.
The girl saw his change in expression and clearly thought it was because of her, because she shifted even closer to him as I neared. The second I was in front of him, I wasted no time in wrapping my arms around his neck and tugging his face down to me. I kissed him firmly, my lips pressing hungrily against his own as his arms uncrossed from his chest to land on my hips. My tongue slid across his own once before I brok
e the kiss.
I could feel the girl watching me but I couldn't be bothered to look at her as I grinned at Reece, his face only inches from my own. I vaguely heard the obnoxious "oohs" that sounded around us because of the sudden PDA, but I didn't care.
"Hi," I said, smiling widely at him. My elbows straightened out and I let my arms fall lazily behind his neck.
"Hi," he returned, his grin equally wide. The girl, who for some reason was still standing next to us, huffed in annoyance. I turned my gaze from Reece to shoot her a disbelieving look.
"Yes?" I questioned. Her mouth fell open as if about to speak before she snapped it shut again. She didn't seem to know what to say and was unable to do anything but scowl at me.
"He's mine, honey," I said, tightening my arms around his neck once more. Reece smirked as he pressed his lips into my temple, letting his mouth linger there to hide his expression. I felt his chest vibrate against mine as he chuckled deeply.
She shot me another indignant look before muttering what sounded an awful lot like 'bitch' under her breath before walking away. I laughed in triumph, pleased that for once, finding Reece with another girl had ended well. An excited buzz ran through my veins from my public claim over Reece and his immediate acceptance of it. It was easy to ignore her lame insult. Speaking of insults...
"I had no idea you were so territorial," he laughed, pulling back from me slightly to look me in the eye.
"I'm sick of watching girls think they can have you so... I guess I am, yeah," I said, a self-satisfied grin on my face. He grinned, pleased that he had elicited such a jealous reaction from me. My momentary triumph was diminished, however, by the reminder that I needed to tell him about my car.
"Can I talk to you?" I asked. I tried to keep my tone light so he wouldn't assume something bad. His grin faltered slightly before he replaced it quickly, a flash of doubt crossing his eyes.
"Sure," he answered. He looked like he was trying to remain positive even though I knew he could sense what it was about. I gave him a small close-lipped smile before grabbing his hand and pulling him away from the crowd. His large hand nearly completely captured mine as I wove through the people, leading him this time instead of the other way around. I listened as he shot several 'heys' and 'how are yous?' around to the various people we passed, and I was once again struck by the realization that he was, apparently, very popular.
It was such a strange concept to me to consider him that way, but I supposed it was true. Every time I had seen him at the start of our relationship, he had been positively surrounded by people. Even now, at what was supposed to be a small gathering before heading downtown, a bunch of people had shown up at his house uninvited. He just didn't seem to be that way when he was around just me, though. When he was with me, it seemed like he had only a few friends, and me, even though it was abundantly clear that wasn't the case.
I finally managed to pull us through the crowd and down the hall to his room, where I let myself in and watched Reece close the door behind us. He leaned back against it, watching me closely with a ghost of a grin on his face.
"What's up?" he asked, cutting to the point. His brows pinched together tightly as what was left of his smile fell from his face.
"Um," I said, stalling. He raised his eyebrows expectantly at me. I didn't like how he stood so far from me, watching me like he was expecting the worst. I crossed the room to him where he'd stopped by the door and grabbed both of his hands in mine.
"Don't get mad," I started, my voice calm.
"That's not a great way to start but okay," he muttered, his voice strained.
"Someone painted a word on my car last night while I was here," I told him, wincing slightly as I waited for his reaction. His face didn't change as he studied me further.
"What was the word?" he asked.
"Slut," I grimaced. His face tightened at the word and his hands gripped mine more firmly.
"Who did it?" he pressed, his tone telling me he already suspected what I did.
"I don't know for sure but I have a pretty good idea..." I trailed off, hoping he'd finish.
"Fucking Jack and Samuel," he muttered, tearing his gaze from me distractedly. "I swear to god they are the most immature idiots on this planet."
"It's not a big deal, Reece," I said, trying to soothe him. My thumbs ran across the backs of his knuckles.
"It is, Abby! They can't pull that shit- it's so stupid. And they can't talk about you that way," he said, his voice growing angrier by the second.
"Reece, please, it's fine," I said, trying to calm him down.
"Wait, this happened last night?" he said, suddenly realizing what I'd said.
"Yes," I said sheepishly, wincing as I waited for his reaction.
"Damnit Abby, why didn't you say anything?" he grumbled, tearing his hand from mine and shoving it through his hair in annoyance.
"I just told you," I said.
"You waited a whole day!"
"I know, I'm sorry, but I wanted to tell you in person so I could calm you down," I reasoned, my empty hand now reaching forward to grip his hip.
"I am calm," he huffed, his chest rising and falling heavily as he glared at me, contradicting his words.
"You're not, Reece," I said, keeping my voice neutral. "Please don't do anything, it's just a stupid prank."
"It's not just a stupid prank and you know it," he said sharply.
I held his eye contact, a sad expression falling across my face as I let my thumb run along his hipbone. "I don't care about that. I just care about you not getting hurt."
My tone seemed to soften him slightly, and his harsh expression loosened. His hand, which was hanging limply by his side, rose to rest on my shoulder. He ran his thumb across my collarbone as he thought.
"I'm not gonna get hurt, Abby," he said. His voice had, thankfully, dropped some of the anger it had previously held.
"You won't if you don't do anything," I reasoned. "Please, Reece."
"Please, what?"
"Please don't do anything," I begged. "Just let it go."
He sighed heavily as he studied my face, his eyes flicking back and forth between mine quickly. I held my breath as I waited for his response, my heart thudding quickly in my chest. It seemed to take hours before he finally broke the silence.
"Fine," he muttered. "But you should have told me right away, Abby, we've been over this."
"I know, I'm sorry. Do you see my point though? If I had told you last night, who knows what you would have done."
"Yeah, yeah," he muttered, seeing that I was right. Tentatively, I leaned up on my toes to press my lips lightly to his. I was relieved when he returned the pressure, kissing me gently before I sank back down to my feet.
"So can we still have a good night now or did I ruin it?" I asked with a soft smile. My heart soared when a grin stretched across his beautiful lips.
"You didn't ruin it," he said. "Let's go have fun."
"Let's," I agreed, my grin widening even more as he kissed me one last time before leading us out of his room and back to the crowd. Almost immediately, we were intercepted by Chloe, Emily, and Luke.
"You two, stay out of each other's pants for five minutes and come play this game with us," Luke teased, seeing that we had come from Reece's room and incorrectly assessing what we'd been doing. Reece didn't bother correcting him before raising an eyebrow at me, silently asking if I wanted to. I nodded, shrugging. I was just happy I had told Reece without any major drama and that I'd managed to make him promise to behave.
We followed the three until they reached the tiny table Reece had in his kitchen. They each took a seat, leaving one open for Reece and I. Without a second's hesitation, Reece sat down and pulled me to his lap. He leaned over my shoulder, his height making it easy to see over me as he wrapped his arms around my waist. I grinned contently, loving that he was comfortable holding me like this in front of people.
"What are we playing?" I asked,
looking around at the group excitedly.
"Fuck the dealer, everyone know how to play?" Luke asked, looking around as he shuffled the cards nonchalantly in his hands. I noticed his grin linger on Emily for a few seconds before his eye dropped in a wink. I grinned at their interaction, pleased she didn't seem to be basing her affections on absolutely nothing.
Everyone nodded their consent, confirming that they knew the relatively simple rules of the game. I watched Chloe stand to gather us drinks while Luke finish shuffling. I felt Reece press his mouth against my shoulder and let it rest there. One of my hands rested over Reece's as they wound around my stomach while the other reached up to accept the drink Chloe handed me. When Reece made no move to release me and take the one she offered him, I rolled my eyes and set mine down before grabbing it as well. Chloe shot him an amused look before taking her seat again.
"Don't be rude," I scolded quietly. I didn't sound very convincing, though, because the grin was still on my face. The fact that he didn't want to let me go even to accept a drink made me very happy. His arms tightened around me in a momentary hug before loosening them again, and he continued to rest his lips against my shoulder as he watched us play the game.
He declined his turn when Luke prompted him but did manage to take a few sips of his drink on his own. After several rounds and several drink refills, the small group of us was significantly buzzed off alcohol and the contagious giddy mood that had settled over everyone. Luke had taken over Chloe's drink duty, and Emily took advantage of his short absences to shoot playful glances at me. Reece groaned behind me as he tried to ignore her. He was extremely uninterested in her plot to get together with Luke, which I found adorable.
"Shall we go, guys?" Emily asked after we finished yet another round of the game. She was practically bouncing in her seat, beyond excited to get to the bar and continue her scheme to get with Luke. Everyone checked their phones for the time before agreeing we should start walking. Reece pressed his lips at the base of my neck once before mumbling into my ear.
