by A. E. Murphy
“Eloise?”
“Oh my god, that’s not fair! I wanted to play the question game for longer.” She starts giggling again. “I… discovered… jelly shots.”
Of course she did. Jesus Christ. “How did you get my number?”
“I don’t memberrem.” The line goes silent.
“Elle?” I call loudly. “Elle?”
“I really like it when you call me Elle. It’s sweet. You make it sound sweet.”
“Elle… are you home? Are you safe?”
She hiccups and I hear her curse. It sets me on edge. “Yeah, I’m fine… This guy’s giving me a ride.”
Now I’m worried. “Guy? What guy?”
“I… what’s your name?” She starts laughing again, but I don’t hear anybody speaking in the background. “That’s a good point… where the fuck is Hayley?”
Now I’m extremely worried. “Where are you? Elle?” I pull the car over, my eyes scanning the streets for a miracle, or at least a sign pointing in her direction. “Elle?”
“Yeah?”
“Where are you?” She starts giggling again and I don’t think it’s at me. “Where the fuck are you, Elle?”
“I’m fine… you don’t have to… hic… rescue me. I just… I just thought I should hear your voice.”
I have no idea what she’s saying. “Elle, please just tell me where you are?”
“Oh my god… HAYLEY!” She yells. “Don’t… don’t you dare!”
“Elle, talk to me. Tell me where you are.”
“You have to be the sexiest redhead I’ve ever seen in my life.” I hear a gruff male voice, louder than should be possible for somebody walking beside her, which means they’re closer than should be possible and they sound fucking sober. The line goes dead and I scramble to find my phone in the car.
I pull up my call logs and call back her number. I get no answer.
I try again three more times before I put the car into drive and start to scour the streets, calling her number ever few seconds.
Answer you stupid female! What are you doing?
I swerve around corners, my eyes looking everywhere but at the road. I’m fortunate that nothing steps out in front of my car, but I’m frantic, panicking and so fucking scared.
I drive to her house but see no lights on. I wait and wait for her to go home, but nobody arrives and I realise I’ve wasted half an hour sitting on my arse when I could have been searching the streets.
Her phone starts going straight to voicemail and I can honestly say I have never felt so helpless in my life.
What the hell has she done?
Eloise
“I’m not moving…” I mutter in protest as Hayley flicks water at me. She places two pills in my hand and hands me the glass that contains the evil, cold liquid that woke me. “Why?”
“School in twenty minutes.”
“I’m not going.”
“Mum didn’t lie to your dad so you could skip school.”
“Tell her I’m ill.”
Hayley waits for me to down the water and pills before hitting me over the head with a pillow. “Go and have a shower; we’re late.”
“Where’s my phone?” I ask, stripping down to nothing and wrapping a towel around myself.
“Broken, remember? You decided you hated men and then you decided to throw it against a random house.”
“I am so glad it’s insured.” I drag myself to the bathroom and climb into the shower as Hayley brushes her teeth over the sink and quickly combs her damp hair.
I make it a quick shower and braid my hair on the way, but we still make it to school half an hour late.
When I step into the quiet classroom with Hayley by my side, Isaac’s eyes come to me. At first they’re full of relief, but then they’re burning with rage. I lower my head and scuttle to my desk. I feel embarrassed, but I can’t quite figure out why. My mind is screaming at me that I did something last night that I shouldn’t have done. I just can’t remember what it was that I did.
“Sorry we’re late, Sir,” Hayley says quietly and we both quickly pull our books from our bags.
He doesn’t say anything. He keeps his eyes on his desk and I watch as his shoulders expand with a deep breath. He looks exhausted. There are dark rings under his eyes and his usually tame hair is wilder today. It actually looks really attractive.
After a few moments he finally looks up. “Eloise, if you could hang back after the lesson, I have the work you missed from last week.”
I’m sure I got that on Monday. No, I know I definitely got that on Monday. I’m about to point this out, but the stare he’s giving me forces me to stay silent and sink in my seat.
Everybody seems to sense his mood and not one person speaks out of turn. The time goes too quickly and I find myself dreading the moment the bell rings.
When it does, I think about escaping with the crowd to escape whatever kind of punishment he has in store for me. It would help if I knew what I did wrong.
Instead I remain seated and watch as he glances down the hall to check for lingering students. He shuts the door and twists the lock. My heart starts hammering in my chest, my mind spinning with what’s about to happen.
He just locked the door.
Teachers aren’t allowed to lock themselves in with their students.
He strides towards me, his eyes narrowed and still burning with the same rage they were filled with at the beginning of class. I stand abruptly, not wanting to be sat down.
My heart races with fear when he continues towards me and I retreat until my back is against the wall.
“Where were you?” He hisses, his voice calmer than his body language.
My mouth drops open when his hand comes to rest beside my head, effectively blocking me into the corner.
“I asked you a question.” His voice is quieter this time, even more dangerous than before.
“I don’t... what do you mean?”
“I didn’t sleep at all last night,” he says, his eyes roaming over my face. I really wish I’d put on makeup today. “I didn’t sleep a fucking wink.”
“Oh.” I daren’t ask why.
“Do you have any idea…?” His voice gets louder and louder. “How fucking worried I was?” He pushes away from the wall and grips his hair with both hands. “I spent all night driving the streets looking for you. I called you over and over and over again! WHERE THE FUCK WERE YOU?”
“I… I stayed at Hayley’s.”
“You stayed at Hayley’s.” He laughs a little, but it’s not a happy laugh. “I got a call last night at around midnight.”
Oh no.
“Yep. You called me. You were intoxicated beyond your limits. You were alone and then…” He turns away from me, his fists clenching by his side. “Go… I can’t even look at you right now.”
“I… I am so sorry.”
He spins back to me, both hands now caging me in. “Sorry? I thought… when you didn’t show up for class on time and nobody had seen you or Hayley, I hated myself. I thought something had happened. I thought they’d be digging up your body from beneath a mountain of litter in a ditch somewhere! I thought some fucking asshole had lured you home and was doing unimaginable…” He lets out a breath, his face getting closer. “I stayed awake all night with so many thoughts and situations running through my mind, but I didn’t call the Police. I didn’t call your dad. I didn’t call anybody and when you didn’t show up this morning… I hated myself.”
“I’m sorry.”
“Is that all you can say?” He yells, his hand slapping the wall beside my head when my eyes lower from his. “I was worried sick!”
“I shouldn’t have called.” I shake my head. I am such an idiot. “I shouldn’t have worried you like that. I’m sorry.”
“You should always fucking call, Elle. But when you call, you should tell the person on the phone where the hell you are so they can pick you the hell up!”
“I was fine, as you can see. Nothing bad happened.”<
br />
“To you. You didn’t spend the entire night scouring the streets looking for an idiotic girl and her equally idiotic friend!”
Ouch. “I should go.” He doesn’t move, so I look towards the door.
“Don’t you care? Are you that self-centred?”
“Of course I care… I just don’t know what to say.”
“Say you’re sorry!” He shouts.
“I did.”
“Say it like you fucking mean it and say you won’t do it again.” His hand cups my face. It’s fierce, but it doesn’t hurt. He turns my head sharply and I notice that his eyes have softened. “Promise me you won’t ever do that again. Ever.” His voice is now as soft as his eyes. Shaking his head, he slides his fingers into my hair and grips the back of my neck, pulling me closer until my forehead is touching his. I hold my breath, but not on purpose; I just forgot how to breathe. “Say it and mean it.”
“I won’t…” My hand grabs at his wrist, my fingers circling his tanned flesh and holding it tight. “I promise, I won’t. I don’t want to.”
His eyes close and his tense body relaxes. “You smell like rhubarb.” His voice is quiet, so quiet I barely hear it.
A chill sweeps through me when he inhales and his eyes open again onto mine. His pupils dilate slowly and his fingers clench my neck. It’s almost painful, but not quite. A whimper falls from my mouth at the strange sensation it sends down my spine before landing with a thud between my legs, causing an ache so brutal and deep I can hardly resist the urge to rub myself against him like a cat.
I’ve never felt so alert; my senses have never felt so empowered.
“If you break your promise, I’ll never forgive you,” he whispers and I feel his minty breath against my drying lips. Standing straight, he pulls back and takes a step away from me. He clears his throat and scratches at his neck as I sway on the spot. “Go to your class. I’ll write you a note.”
I don’t know what to say, so instead I say nothing and meekly follow him to his desk. He scribbles something down on a piece of paper and hands it to me. I pocket it before moving to the door. “I am sorry.” I say one last time before leaving the classroom completely.
I have never ached so badly to be touched in my life and for the rest of the day my heart doesn’t stop racing. It becomes almost painful and the urge to go back into the classroom and just throw myself at my teacher is almost too much to bear.
Chapter Eighteen
Isaac
The cold water bites at my skin but it does little to relieve the throbbing between my thighs. I’ve never wanted to punch myself in the groin before, but I think I’ve been swollen there now for eight hours. When it has calmed down it’s filled straight back up again at the mere thought of what happened in my classroom this morning.
What was I thinking getting so close to her like that? I must be insane. What if she reports me? I’m going to lose my fucking job.
I should apologise, ask her to keep it between us.
I decide that going to bed early might help, but the slightest movement of the sheet teases me endlessly. My thighs burn with the need for release and my stomach tumbles aggressively, wanting the muscles to relax.
Like a flag pole, my cock stands proudly as I lie in bed, spread out with the window wide open. It’s fucking freezing but I still can’t shake this god damn feeling.
“Fuck,” I curse and wrap my hand around myself.
Her smile appears in my mind, her eyes, the way she moves, the sound of her laugh and the scent that lingers on her skin. It torments me.
I imagine her lying beside me, her skin sparkling in the dim light, her eyes reflecting my own lust back at me. My hand runs up and down my solid length. I imagine it’s hers, her dainty fingers squeezing tight as her luscious breasts press against my arm.
I can hear her whispering words in my ear. I feel her lower lip, so plump and juicy, flick at the lobe as her tongue traces the edge.
“Christ.” Beads of perspiration spread across my skin as I try to hold back, as all of the blood in my body races to one place. Nothing else matters now. I want to throw her down, rip her clothes from her body and plunge into her as deep as I can reach.
Fuck the rules!
I need it… I need her.
I need to taste her, every single inch of her sweet scented skin.
I need to hear her moan my name. I need the sheets to be rumpled where she’s grasped at them during her orgasms. I need her sweat to dampen my bed, so when I lie in it I’m surrounded by her.
I can’t take this anymore. It’s too much. She’s too much.
I’ve never wanted anything so badly in my life.
A sharp knock at the door sends me spiralling out of my lust filled heaven. I curse loudly and climb from my bed, my robe wrapped tightly around myself.
“What do you want?” I snap, irritated at the interruption.
Katherine blinks, shocked at my tone. “I… you avoided me today.”
“No I didn’t.” I wasn’t avoiding her; I was avoiding everybody. “Look, I’m in the middle of something.”
Her eyes pan down my body before focusing on the tent in my robe. I watch her eyes heat. “So it seems. Are you alone?”
I don’t know why, but I nod. I should have said no.
Her hands immediately go to my shoulders and after a quick shove I’m back inside and the door is closing behind her. “Maybe we can pick up where we left off.”
“I don’t think so.” I pry her hands from my robe, where they’re gripping the lapels. “Look… last night was a mistake.”
“I don’t think so.” She repeats my own words and swiftly pulls at the rope holding my robe together. Her eyes heat and her hand reaches for me.
“No,” I order, slapping her hand away. “You need to go.”
Her shocked eyes come to mine. “What? But…”
“I’m not doing this. You need to go.” I grab her arm and pull her to the door.
“Stop being such a pussy.”
“Stop being such a bitch and get the fuck out!” I hiss, pulling the door open. “I’ll see you at work tomorrow and we’ll talk then.”
Eloise
“What’s wrong with you? Still hung-over?” Hayley asks as I pick at the salad on my plate.
I shake my head. “No, I’m just stressed that I no longer have a job.”
“Welcome to my world.”
“I’m sorry… I just… you know how badly I need to be busy.”
“Yeah, I know. Apparently Mr Price Senior is hiring for a TA. You should talk to him.”
I roll my eyes. “They never hire students for that role.”
“It’s worth asking. You are a friend of the family.” She has a point.
“I guess it’s worth a shot. It’ll get me another reference too if I do a good job.”
“See? I’m not just a pretty face.” Hayley blows a bubble with the chewing gum in her mouth and pats me on the head. “Am I staying at yours tonight?”
“If you want to.”
“Wicked, I’ll bring the popcorn.”
“I’ll provide the snacks.” I push my plate towards her and watch as she eagerly finishes the strips of chicken.
“You’re such a pig.”
I laugh when she oinks and curl up further into the corner of the sofa, pulling the blanket up to my shoulder. I’ll speak to Mr Price tomorrow and see what he says. Hayley is right; what harm could it do? I doubt I’ll be able to give him the hours he needs, but it’s definitely worth asking.
My mum and dad come home together, take one look at Hayley and I curled up on the couch and disappear to the other room. The only time my dad comes in is to ask if we want takeout food. He doesn’t seem happy when I respond that I’m on a diet, but there’s not much he can do about it.
I need to eat nothing but salad for at least eight days to get rid of all of those calories I drank last night.
I can’t believe Isaac was up all night looking for me.
Would h
e have done that for just anybody?
I think on it for a moment before another thought clicks into place. It wasn’t just me out last night. Hayley was too, but he didn’t shout at Hayley. He didn’t say anything to her.
My heart warms and tingles at the thought that maybe Isaac does think more of me than I thought.
******
“I’m breaking up with Wesley. That relationship has run its course,” Hayley says, blowing her fringe from her face as I fill in my application for Boston University.
“You like somebody else, don’t you?”
Her mouth drops open with fake insult. “I would never do that to somebody.”
I snort and quirk a brow her way. “You did that with your last four flavours.”
With indignation she flips her hair over her shoulder and raises her chin. “Well… they should have paid me more attention and maybe I wouldn’t have strayed.”
Now I’m definitely laughing. “Those guys fawned over you like a little girl fawns over a puppy.”
“Whatever, I’m done with him and I’m moving on.”
“Fair enough.” I rest my head on her shoulder. “You know I love you no matter what.”
“I really wish you’d give Garrett a chance.”
“Hayley, he dropped out of college.”
“For an apprenticeship at that car garage. He didn’t drop out he just switched courses.”
“We’re in different places.”
“You’re so stuck up.” She says this with a lot of love in her tone. “What’s wrong with him being a mechanic?”
“There’s nothing wrong with that. It’s just… I don’t want to be tied down for when I go to university. What if I meet my dream guy and we can’t live happily ever after because I’m tied to somebody back home?”
Hayley nods slowly. “I see your point.”
“I’m not like you. You know how attached I get to people. You can just wake up and suddenly not care about them in that way anymore. I’ll still be crying for months after a break up and you know it.”
