As Marissa locked the door, the room began to fill with people. Chad stopped messing with the electronics and joined her.
“And now we sit back and relax,” Chad told her. “Want a drink?”
She shook her head. He disappeared upstairs and returned with a beer and a couple of pops. He handed Marissa a pop and opened his beer and the other pop.
“Hot tub, dancing, pool? What do you want to do?” he asked.
Marissa shrugged. She had never really been to a party and was feeling overwhelmed.
Chad finished his pop and threw it away before grabbing Marissa’s hand. He led her upstairs, through the kitchen, and into the backyard. He sat on the edge of the swimming pool, kicking his shoes off before putting his feet in the water. As Marissa did the same, he held out his pack of cigarettes to her.
“I’m sorry,” he said as she took one and lit it. He took a drink of his beer. “Honestly, sometimes I forget our age difference. You have probably never been to a party like this.”
Marissa shook her head, not wanting to let him know that she had never been to a party that didn’t involve cake, presents, and parental supervision. Chad pulled her up onto his lap and put his arms around her.
“Your aunt says I should go to court and get emancipated from my parents. I still wouldn’t be able to touch my trust fund until I’m 18, but I have more than enough to get my own place.”
“Sounds like you are doing well.”
“Things have definitely turned around,” he told her. “Especially having you here with me right now. I hated not being able to see you as much as I wanted to this past month, but I really think we will be able to make this work when you go back home.”
“I hope so.” Marissa felt Chad stiffen. “What’s wrong?” she asked, moving off his lap.
~twenty one~
Chad stood up as someone Marissa had never seen before walked out the back door.
He was slightly taller than Chad, but much skinnier. He had the same blue eyes and blonde hair. Just looking at him scared Marissa.
“I know I taught you to throw a better party than this, little brother.”
Chad moved Marissa behind him and squeezed her hand. “Go find Chris,” he whispered before addressing his brother. “Eric, what are you doing here?”
“No one inside your lame little party would smoke with me, and I know you wouldn’t turn it down. I brought some X for you too.”
Marissa stood in the doorway and turned back to Chad, not wanting to leave him alone. It wasn’t just a cigarette that his brother was handing him. Chad waved her on and she rushed into the house.
Chad threw the joint into the pool. “I don’t want that and you know it.”
Eric laughed. “Stop trying to fool yourself. You know you want it. Everything is missing from the cave, which means you are either using or selling, and I know you don’t need the money, since you have all of mine and Dravyn’s.”
“Eric, you need to leave,” Chris said, walking into the backyard with Brayden and Marissa. Chris moved to stand between Chad and Eric, while Brayden stayed back with Marissa.
“Oh, how sweet. I remember my twin always having my back, too. It’s your fault he’s gone,” Eric told Chad. “By the way, how does it feel to raise someone else’s kid? If Tamara wasn’t such a slut, I would still have Dravyn. And who was the girl you were out here with? I didn’t realize you liked them that young.”
“Shut up and leave, Eric,” Chris told him again. The dispute was starting to draw a crowd.
“I’ll leave as soon as I get the money for my stolen stash.”
Chris pulled a stack of money from his pocket. “Chad didn’t touch it. I got rid of it all, but here, take your money and leave,” he said, throwing the money at him.
Eric scrambled around picking up money. “This will get rid of me tonight, but I will be back,” he threatened. “No one steals from me.”
The uninvited guest turned and pushed his way through the crowd. As soon as he was gone, Marissa ran up to Chad, followed closely by Brayden. It wasn’t until she put her arms around her boyfriend that she noticed he was shaking.
“Are you okay?” she asked him.
Chad shook his head, unable to find his voice.
“You didn’t smoke it did you?” Chris asked him.
Again, Chad shook his head. “He handed it to me. It was in my hand, and I wanted to,” he admitted. “I threw it in the pool.”
“Maybe I’m just young and stupid, but I know a lot of people that smoke back at home, but they don’t get like this,” Marissa said.
“Eric and Dravyn always laced with Angel Dust. One hit and you’re hooked, and the withdrawals are terrible,” Chris explained.
“I never knew that,” Chad said.
“Dravyn admitted a lot to me the night you and Eric went to get Anthony,” Chris explained. “Almost everything was laced with someone else.”
Marissa lit a cigarette and handed it to Chad. He was slowly starting to calm down.
“Do I even want to know what was in their X?” Chad asked.
“Nope,” Chris told him. “You are better off not knowing.”
The crowd that the argument attracted had all scattered. Melanie appeared in the yard, holding a beer.
“I’ve been looking for you all. What’s wrong?” she asked when she saw Chad.
Chris explained the party crasher to his sister.
“Oh, shit.” She held her beer out to Chad. “You need this more than I do.”
Chad reached for the can and finished its contents. “I’m okay,” he assured everyone. “Go back to the party.”
Melanie pulled Brayden back into the house, but Chris didn’t want to leave.
“He won’t come back tonight,” Chad assured his brother. “Marissa will come find you if I need you.”
Marissa nodded and Chris reluctantly moved back into the house.
The party was winding down. Chris wasn’t in the mood to party, so he started picking up empty beer cans.
Marissa refused to leave Chad’s side. She felt so helpless as he just stood, gazing into the pool. She didn’t know how long the stood there in silence.
Chad turned to her and held his hand out to her. “Can I have my keys?” he asked.
“No. You’ve been drinking,” she told him.
“I’m not going to drive,” he assured her. “Will you unlock my room for me?” he asked, realizing she wasn’t going to hand over the keys.
“That I can do,” she told him, taking his hand and walking through the house.
The party was over. Chris was sitting on the edge of the hot tub, watching TV. The music was off. Brayden and Melanie were nowhere in sight.
“Everything cool?” Chris asked as they walked by. “Everyone left after Eric’s scene. Might have been afraid of cops showing up.”
“I just want to go to bed,” Chad told his brother.
Marissa unlocked the bedroom and followed Chad in. He sat on the edge of the bed.
“This is not how the night was supposed to go,” he told her.
“What did you have planned?” she asked,
“Stay with me tonight?”
“No,” she told him.
“Do you remember the day you left Lynn’s?” he asked. “I was sleeping on the basement floor, and you curled up with me.” Marissa nodded. “I want to sleep with you in my arms. I know you’re not ready for anything to happen between us, and I told you, I’m fine with that. I just want to hold you.”
Marissa thought about it. He had never pressured her into anything and she was fairly certain that he never would. If anything, he was usually the one to pull away when they were making out.
“Was this part of your plan?” she asked.
“Asking you to stay was part of it. I wasn’t sure if you would, but I was prepared for it.” He handed her a bag. “I even have something for you to sleep in. The pajama pants are Mel’s, but they should fit you. And I have to admit, I want to see you wearing on
e of my shirts.”
“Okay.”
“What? Really?” Chad was honestly surprised she had agreed to it.
“Really. I’m going to go change.” She grabbed the bag and disappeared into the bathroom.
While she was changing, Chad quickly changed into a pair of basketball shorts and a sleeveless shirt. “Is this okay?” he asked when she returned. “I usually sleep in boxers, but I figured you might be a little uncomfortable.”
Marissa nodded. “It’s fine.”
Chad sat on the edge of the bed and motioned for her to sit with him. “Can I let you in on a secret?” he asked.
Marissa nodded, reaching for Chad’s cigarettes.
“I have never had a girl in here before,” he told her. He pointed to the walls, which Marissa noticed were plastered with drawings and sketches. “This is the only place I could ever completely be myself. I refused to let anyone in.”
“Then why let me in?”
“Because, I am falling in love with you,” he told her quietly. “And I’m falling fast,” he added when she didn’t say anything. “I can’t stop thinking about you. And you saved me tonight.” More than just tonight, he thought.
“How?” Marissa’s voice cracked.
“When you went to get Chris, you turned around before going inside,” he explained.
“I didn’t want to leave you alone with him,” Marissa admitted.
“Seeing you so worried is what gave me the strength to not smoke. He handed it to me. It was in my hand, and I wanted it. You have no idea how bad I wanted it. I looked up and saw you and was able to throw it into the pool.”
“How do you know?” she asked.
“Know what?”
“That you are falling in love with me,” she clarified,
Chad took a deep breath before he started to explain. “I thought I was in love before, with Tamara, but I was definitely wrong. That was nothing compared to how I feel about you. I’ve never felt this way about anyone. I can’t stand being away from you for too long at a time. I love being around you. You helped me with Anthony from the very beginning. You spent the first couple weeks of your summer vacation helping me with school work. Because of you, I will be graduating next year, on time. I might even have a chance at a wrestling scholarship. I can go on all night, but the biggest reason might sound lame. I just want to be a better person when I’m around you.”
Marissa was silent for a moment. “I’m falling in love with you, too,” she told him. “You don’t see me as just some kid. You don’t pressure me into anything. I can be myself around you. I can’t even explain how I feel. No words ever seem good enough. I can’t even write about you without it sounding stupid. Or the words on the page don’t come close to what I’m trying to describe.” She had attempted to write her feelings about him several times, but never was able to capture how she truly felt on paper. The words she needed just didn’t seem to exist.
“You have no idea how amazing you are,” Chad whispered to her, before leaning in to kiss her. Marissa wrapped her arms around him and leaned back on the bed, pulling him on top of her. He explored her body, over her clothes, with his hands. She tangled her fingers through his hair. She never wanted to let him go.
Too soon, Chad began to pull away. Marissa tried to hold him tighter, but he pulled her hands off of him. He stood up and began to pace.
“I’m sorry,” Marissa told him, breathlessly.
“No need to apologize,” he said, lighting a cigarette and handing her the pack.
Marissa sat up in the bed and straightened out Chad’s high school wrestling shirt that she was wearing. “I’m keeping this,” she informed him as she lit a cigarette of her own.
“It’s all yours,” he said, sitting next to her.
They smoked in silence as Marissa looked around at the drawings on the walls. She stood up and walked about to get a better look. “These are really good. Is this?”
“You, sitting on the boulder with your notebook. Yes. That was the first day I met you, and I didn’t want to forget a single detail,” he told her. “I must have sketched that picture a million times before it turned out decent,” he admitted.
“I want to show you something.” She fished a notebook from her bag. She spent a few moments flipping through pages before she walked back to him. She handed the book the Chad, pointing at the passage she wanted him to read.
Chad. 17? The most gorgeous guy I have ever seen. Medium height. Muscular. Pale. Longish blonde hair with blue tips. Haunted blue eyes. Adorable dimples. Scar on left cheek (what from?). Eyebrow pierced (I want mine done).
“I never wanted to forget either,” she explained. “But I could never get it right.”
“Do my eyes seriously look haunted?” he asked as he stared into her eyes.
“They did back then. Most days I would say they sparkle.”
“I think I like sparkling better.”
Marissa yawned. It was nearly 2 am. “So do I.”
“It’s been a long day,” he said. “Let’s get some sleep.”
Marissa nodded as she stood up and crawled into the huge bed. Chad switched off the light and turned the radio on quietly.
“Is this going to bother you?” he asked.
“Not a bit,” she assured him. “Silence would bother me more.”
“Me too,” he told her as he crawled into the bed. Chad stretched out on his back, and Marissa curled up next to him with her head on his chest. He wrapped his arms around her and kissed her forehead. “Goodnight. And happy anniversary,” he whispered.
Marissa was already asleep.
~twenty two~
The next morning, Marissa woke up lying on Chad’s chest the same way she fell asleep. Just moments after opening her eyes, she felt his arms squeeze her tighter.
“Good morning beautiful,” he said. “I’m assuming you slept well. I don’t think you moved a muscle.”
Marissa nodded as she sat up. She pulled her pony tail out and smoothed her hair before pulling it back again. “So how much of last night went according to your plan?” she asked.
“I honestly didn’t expect you to stay with me,” he admitted. “I hoped you would, but I expected to walk you back to Lynn’s. I definitely didn’t plan on Eric crashing the party. I did however, plan on telling you how I felt. It’s something I’ve wanted to tell you for a while now.”
“And the plan for today is?” Marissa prompted.
“A surprise,” he said. He stood up and stretched. “I’m going to shower upstairs. You can use my bathroom.” He leaned in and kissed her before leaving the room.
Marissa collapsed back on the bed. It was so insanely comfortable that she didn’t want to move. I can’t believe he gave up living here, just because he refused to break up with me. Although, he probably would have moved in with Eric by now if he hadn’t moved in with Lynn, she reminded herself. The thought of him living with the brother she had met the night before scared her. I’m glad he didn’t. After a few minutes, she was able to tear herself out of bed and into the shower, eager to see what Chad had planned for the day.
She was standing in front of the bathroom mirror, attempting to pull her wet hair into a ponytail, when she heard Chad come back down the stairs.
Chad’s plan for the day was a tour of every place that something important had happened in their relationship. The boulder where they first met. The park bench on the side of the road where he had asked her out. The gazebo overlooking the lake. For the places he didn’t want to actually visit, he had drawn. The park where she had forgiven him after his breakdown. The cave where he had had the breakdown. He had even drawn a picture of the slide at the campground where they had left notes when they missed each other.
“I don’t want to risk forgetting a single moment with you,” he explained when she asked about the drawings.
They spent their afternoon sitting together on the boulder, watching everyone else play football.
That evening, the five teenagers sp
ent the night in Chad’s basement, watching movies, sitting in the hot tub, and playing pool. For the second night in a row, Marissa fell asleep in Chad’s arms.
The next morning, Chad and Brayden drove Marissa back to the campground. Marissa didn’t want to go, but there was nothing she could do about it.
She felt so lost and alone. There was no way to call Melissa from the campground. She didn’t know when she would see Chad again.
Marissa continued spending most of her days on the playground, not knowing when Chad could show up. One day, she found a pack of cigarettes hidden in the slide and she was grateful.
The days were going by too fast. Chad was only able to visit once or twice a week because of his work schedule. She was dreading the day that she would have to leave.
Brayden had talked Lynn into letting Marissa stay at the house for a couple of days before Marissa left.
She was disappointed when it was her aunt’s van that picked her up from the campground instead of Chad’s Camry.
The next few days flew by. Every summer, it was hard for Marissa to leave, but this summer, it seemed impossible.
“I hate that I’m leaving tomorrow,” she cried on her last night. She was in the basement with the rest of the usual crowd.
“You will be back next summer, right?” Melanie asked.
Marissa nodded. “Probably around Memorial Day again, but that seems so far away.”
Chad was sitting on the couch, holding her. “We will talk all the time,” he assured her. “And I will drive down as often as I can.”
Again, Marissa nodded, but she didn’t say anything. She rested her head on Chad’s shoulder, worried about how the relationship would survive having one hundred eighty miles between them for the next nine months.
Chad stood up and took his girlfriend by the hand. He led her upstairs and out the back door.
“Where are we going?” she asked.
Chad led her around to the back of the house. He turned to her and held her face in his hands. “I know it sucks that you have to leave. Believe me, I hate it too,” he told her. “But being upset about it isn’t going to make it any easier. I already told you, we will get through this. Hopefully next year, I’ll be in Madison, and that will be a lot closer.” He leaned in and kissed her. “I love you, and it will take a hell of a lot more than a three hour drive to keep us apart.”
Summer Love (First Love Book 1) Page 8
