by Lily Graison
Simon stopped, turning back before taking a step closer to her, anger now replacing his obvious pain. "Oh, before I forget," he said leaning down close to her ear. "Thanks for the fuck. It was quite a memory. The next time you have an itch you need to scratch, you know where to find me."
Paige's eyes flew open at his harsh words before Simon stood up straight and smiled at her before turning and walking to the door. Every eye in the room was trained on her and when the whispers from everyone watching the scene started, her anger resurfaced.
"Do you people not have anything better to do!" she yelled before taking off after Simon.
* * *
Simon didn't know what pissed him off more. The fact that things had actually gone worse than he expected or that his chances of having anything other than a quick fuck with Paige were over. Or the familiar fact that he was once again left feeling like the odd man out while the "in" crowd got their laugh.
He walked through the door of the dining hall, hearing the whispers of everyone before Paige yelled. He held back a smile. Bout time the girl spoke up for herself. His shoulders were straight, his stride sure and no matter how confident he looked in his departure, all he could think of was the tears that stung at his eyes.
He buried Colin a long time ago, covering the weak, shy boy he used to be with the strong, cocky man who didn't take shit from anyone. Now, not ten minutes after entering the room, all his insecurities resurfaced and he cursed himself for even trying to be seen as anything other than what they thought him to be.
He'd known coming back here would be a mistake, especially after seeing Paige again, but the insane notion that she had grown up and started living for herself and not just to impress her friends made him think that maybe she wouldn't care. That maybe, she would be able to see past what her friends thought, and make a decision on her own.
He should have known better.
Reaching inside his jacket, Simon searched for his smokes, pulling them from his pocket, only to have them snatched away and a hand grab his arm and jerk him back.
"Just where the hell do you get off!" Paige yelled, glaring hard up at him. "You think you can just waltz in here, flash some cocky grin and then just leave without even an explanation?"
Simon sighed heavily as he stared down at the now red-faced blonde before him. Her eyes were glassy and she was trembling, her anger at him apparent by the look on her face. "What do you want me to say, darling?"
"First off, I'm not your darling," Paige began, "And how about... oh, I don't know, why you forgot to mention that you were Colin Gregory! And don't even get me started on that rude-ass comment in there."
Simon shoved his hands deep inside his jacket pockets and leaned against the wall. "The comment was a cheap shot and I don't exactly remember you telling me `your' name at the time."
"You knew who I was! The fact that you knew should have...."
"Should have what!" Simon said loudly, pushing off the wall and taking a step towards her. "Should have made me crawl at your feet, whining like some pathetic fool to try and get your attention? Sorry gorgeous, but I don't play that game anymore."
"What game is that, Colin? Your attempts to woo me with your useless poetry or following me around like some lost puppy trying to find a home," she ranted before she started to pace the floor.
"You know, my mother told me! She said, `Paige, don't go sleeping around, it'll only get you into trouble.' Why did I not believe her?" she asked no one as she continued to make short laps up and down the hall. "I know people have casual sex all the time... but not me! Not Paige Foster!" she yelled, half laughing as she stopped to look at Simon before returning to her one sided conversation.
"What was I thinking?" she yelled to herself, "I mean, sure you looked good and all, and the dancing was… but, I had sex with you! A complete stranger! Unprotected I might add!" She yelled as she shot daggers at Simon. "Twice!"
Simon watched her pace the hall in front of him yelling and flinging her arms around. She looked like she was talking more to herself than to him. He knew she would be upset, but he didn’t expect this. She was furious.
"I should have just stayed at home! I didn't even want to go to that stupid club," Paige said, sparing a glance over at Simon. "I should have just listened to myself for once and done exactly that!"
Simon snorted at her comment. "That's always been your problem."
"What?" Paige yelled, stopping to turn around.
He looked completely calm lounging against the wall and when he turned his head to look at her, she could see his disposition change in a matter of seconds.
"I said, that's always been your problem," Simon repeated.
"And what is that, oh wise one?" Paige asked, crossing her arms over her chest.
Simon shook his head, laughing lightly before pushing off the wall and taking a few steps closer to her. "You, following that little herd of hyena's around and doing exactly what `they' want you to, that's what."
"I do what I want."
"Since when?" Simon asked, laughing. "You've always done exactly what your friends thought you should. You did it then, and ten years later, you're still doing it."
"For your information, this is the first time I've seen any of them in years."
"Yeah, and the minute you do, you fall right back into the pack, following orders like some confused groupie."
"I do not."
"Then tell me… why are you so upset?" Simon asked her. "Is it because of who I am, or is it because of who they think I am?"
Paige stared up at him, completely lost for words. She'd always done exactly what they told her she should, even when she'd felt she should do differently. Her friends were all she had, what they thought mattered… at least she thought it did.
Simon sighed. "Paige, I'm not going to lie to you and tell you that the minute I saw you at the club that I didn't rejoice in the prospects that you'd finally be able to see me. Me, not who they thought I was," he told her calmly, closing the distance between them. "I have done nothing since the first day I saw you but hope that maybe, someday, you'd be able to see. To see past what everyone else thought. To see me for who I really am."
Paige looked up at him and the quiet shy boy she remembered once again came shining through. The small voice and scared, almost terrified look in his eyes made her look away. She remembered all the things that had been done and said to him, things she didn't like, but stood by and let them happen… all because she felt powerless to stop them.
"Paige."
Paige closed her eyes briefly before she slowly opened them, looking up into the same blue depths that made her skin tingle and pull her into a world where nothing seemed to matter but her.
"You don't have to listen to them anymore," Simon said, quietly. "You can make your own choices."
"Simon, I don't—"
"No. I know what you're going to say Paige and it shouldn't matter what your friends think. You can't tell me you didn't feel anything. I know you did. I could see it in your eyes."
Paige glanced down the hall when she heard footsteps, seeing her friends finally emerge from the dining hall and she felt every ounce of breath leave her lungs when Simon reached out and turned her face back to him.
"They won't be here to run your life after tomorrow," he said, "Do what you want, Paige. For once, make your own decision. Come with me."
Paige swallowed hard, the lump forming in her throat making it difficult to swallow as her mouth went completely dry. She looked at him when he held his hand out to her and the fear in his eyes made her wish for the first time in her life that she'd had the strength to do what she'd wanted to ten years ago.
"Paige?"
Paige turned her head, looking back down the hall when Heather said her name. Her mind was cluttered with rights and wrongs and the line between the two was rapidly becoming confused.
She looked between her friends and Simon. She knew they all had their own reasons for wanting her to go with them and she was
sure they would all be legitimate… right or wrong.
The question was… did she do what she wanted to do or what her friends thought was best.
* * * *
Chapter 14
Paige stretched out her limbs, the morning sun shining through the room and bathing her in bright light before she looked out the window.
The sounds from the open window of the rolling ocean waves tossing along the surf were calming. She smiled, snuggling down into the blankets, the warmth a comfort against the cool breeze carrying through the window.
Her eyes closed, blocking out the sights as a contented sigh escaped her. For the first time in her life, she made decisions for her and she was happy in her choices.
"Paige?"
Paige looked at her friends standing at the end of the hall before they slowly made their way to her. She knew she had to choose. She turned her head, looking back at Simon and the questioning look still in his eyes. He stared down at her and her heart leapt with the possibilities.
"Paige, they're serving; we need to get back inside," Heather said as the group came to a stop.
Paige looked back over at them, their gazes flickering between her and Simon and she had never felt more alone than at that moment. She was torn. Would her friends hate her if she left with him? Would she ever see him again if she didn't?
She took too long to decide.
One minute, she was staring up into clear blue eyes that held so much promise, the next she was watching him walk away. A man, that in two days made her feel alive. A man that made her body burn and beg for more. A man who she knew would never purposely hurt her.
She watched him leave, the scene almost playing in slow motion as the door closed behind him… the voices of her friends a dull thud in her head. She was frozen in place, her mind going in ten different directions at once.
"Come on Paige, our dinner is getting cold," Amy said, smiling as she turned and started down the hall.
The roar of his motorcycle echoed in her head when a light touch on her arm finally snapped her attention back to her friends. Megan was still there and the reassuring smile she always got from her best friend calmed her slightly.
"So, what's it going to be?" Megan asked, "It's your choice you know."
Paige glanced at the others as they slowly trickled back down the hall towards the dining hall before she looked out the windows. "What if it goes bad?"
"What if it doesn't?"
Paige looked back at Megan, a tiny smile forming on her lips. "I really love you Meg, you know that, right?"
"I know, Paige."
Paige's eyes opened when the alarm on the clock began to play. She reached over, switching it off before her attention fell back to the view outside. She sighed, closing her eyes briefly before throwing the covers back and crawling from the bed. She walked to the window and shut it, cutting off the chilling air blowing through. She stared out at the ocean, the blue water bringing another smile to her face when it reminded her of him.
Turning, her smile lingered as she walked back to the bed, crawled under the covers and snuggled in.
"Whose turn is it?"
Paige pulled the blankets up higher around her neck before her eyes snapped opened when they were jerked away. "Yours," she giggled.
Her heart pounded in her chest as she ran through the parking lot. The loud roar of his motorcycle drowning out her voice as she called his name.
"Okay. Let's see. How about… your biggest regret."
"Now or then?" she asked.
"Then."
The loud blaring sound of a car horn startled her as she ran out between the parked cars, the driver slamming on his breaks just as she stopped and looked at him. Her already pounding heart quickening its pace when she realized what had nearly just happened.
She turned quickly, once again running toward the street, watching Simon pull away without even glancing back. She felt like her world was crumbling right before her eyes.
Paige turned, lying on her back before closing her eyes and thinking. A slow smile played across her lips before she opened them. "Probably me listening to your brother when he told me to never call back."
"My brother?"
"Yeah," Paige said closing her eyes. "He wasn't very nice about it either."
Paige screamed his name when she finally stopped running and made it to the road. She watched him drive out of sight, her heart sinking in her chest. Her eyes closed briefly before she finally turned, walking slowly back toward the building where her friends were all waiting.
"When was this?"
"You know that's very distracting," Paige said as slow wet kisses were placed on her neck.
"Your point?"
A light giggle escaped her as the kisses began to rain over her collarbone, the light sweep of his tongue darting out and tasting her skin. "My point is, I can't think clearly when you're doing that." She moaned when he found his way to her breast.
"Too bad," he said smiling, his tongue flicking out, teasing her nipple before his eyes lifted to her face. "Now, what's this about my brother?"
Paige took a deep breath, her hand on the door handle, trying to compose herself before facing everyone in that room again.
She pulled the door open; her friends were all whispering and waiting just down the hall as she looked at them. She sighed heavily, pulling a fake smile onto her face before her body went numb.
Walking in, the door slowly closed behind her and her eyes widened when she heard it.
"Well, I called and he told me to not ever call back."
"You called my house?" he asked surprised, lifting his head.
"Yeah."
Turning slowly, Paige looked out the windows on the door, the fake smile on her face turning into a true smile, as the roar of his motorcycle echoed off the building.
She looked back at her friends, smiling at them before turning back to the door and opening it and walking back outside.
"I made it three blocks before I realized what I had done."
"And what was that?" Paige asked, walking over to him.
"I walked away without a fight. I haven't done that in years," he told her grinning.
Paige smiled as she stopped beside him. "Do you always win?"
"Yes." Simon said looking up at her.
"Really?" she asked, raising her arm and touching his cheek with her hand.
"Yeah, I'm kind of used to getting my way," he told her, leaning into her hand as it cupped his cheek. "I get a little cranky when I don't."
"And what do you want now?"
"The same thing I've always wanted, Paige. You."
"I don't ever remember you calling my house."
"It was two nights before prom," Paige told him smiling slightly.
"He never told me you called."
"Figured as much."
"Well, why is that a regret?"
Paige raised her hand, running it through the short tussled curls on his head before looking up at him. "Because, I never got to tell you."
"Tell me what?" he asked, his voice quiet.
"I never got to tell you, that I'd love to be your date for the prom."
Simon let out the breath he hadn't realized he was holding in as he stared down at her.
Ten years had passed since then and the memory of that day was as fresh as if it had happened yesterday. As much as he hated to admit it, it still hurt.
"You ran out of the room so fast that day, I never got a chance to answer you," Paige said smiling. "And after school, I tried to tell you, but you walked away," she said quietly, her hand lowering to cup his cheek. "I ended up going with Lance, only after Heather said she'd drag me there kicking and screaming if I didn't. I've never been so humiliated as I was that night. There wasn't a person there who didn't know what he'd done to me, and I looked like the biggest fool in the world, walking around with him on my arm. The worst past was, the whole time I was there, I was wishing I was with you."
Simon's eyes closed, his jaw
twitching slightly as he ran her words through his head. "You really wanted to go?"
"Yes. I was tired of being everyone's Stepford friend and wanted to do something for me, just once, before I graduated. I refused to go, especially with Lance. I kept waiting for you to talk to me or to just even look at me. When you didn't, I tried calling you, to see if… to see if you still wanted to go to Prom with me, but Michael told me you weren't there and to never call back, so I didn't. I just figured you hated me by that point, so I didn't even try again."
"I could never hate you," Simon told her as he laid his forehead against hers. "I love you. I have from the moment I saw you."
"I know," Paige said smiling as she leaned up and kissed him.
It felt better than anything she had ever felt. Free to make her own decisions, free from the guilt of what her friends would think. With the wind whipping around her face, Paige's arms wrapped tighter around Simon's waist as they headed back to L.A. on his bike and she knew she'd made the right decision.
It had been an easy choice to make once she realized he was right. Her friends didn't live her life. They wouldn't be there day in and day out to help her cope with the everyday things she faced. She made her own choices daily. Why, just because they were here, could she not make them now?
She wondered why she hadn't ever done it before. The looks on her friends' faces were filled with surprise, but when she tossed her car keys to Megan and seated herself behind Simon, they were smiling. Would it have been that easy all along? Could she have told them no all those years ago and it still have worked out okay?
Paige held Simon to her as the kiss deepened. A month had passed since the reunion and there hadn't been a day since, they hadn't been together. She'd almost given up on her apartment all together as his beach house felt more like home.
They spent most of their time together talking or walking along the beach or their favorite pastime, exploring each other and learning what pleased them. Paige wondered daily what it would have been like over the last ten years if she had been strong enough to stand up for herself and admit that she had always sort of liked him when they were in school. Would he have been like he is now, or had he needed time to discover himself as she had?
