by S. M. Shade
“Rebecca. I got your message. What’s going on with your car?”
Okay, no niceties, straight to the point. “When I push the gas, especially after being stopped, it doesn’t want to go. It just revs for a few seconds before jumping into gear. It’s only done it a couple of times, but I was worried the transmission might be messing up.”
“Did you check your fluid?”
“Yes, and it’s fine. No leaks or anything.”
His sigh through the phone makes it clear he’s not happy about his next statement. “Can you bring it over here tomorrow afternoon? I’ll have a look.”
“Yeah, thanks, Dad.”
“Have a friend bring you so you can leave it.”
“I will.”
“Alright then. See you tomorrow.”
He hangs up without a goodbye. I shouldn’t be surprised. He’s always been a man of few words and dealing with my problems has never been something he enjoys. I do my best not to call him or my mother for help, but Dad is a mechanic, and I really can’t afford to take it to anyone else.
I’ve been trying not to stress over what it might be. I need my car, shitty as it is. My job may be within walking distance, but my school isn’t even close. Lying back, I close my eyes and do what I always do when it feels like the world has it out for me. I think of all the things I do have, all the things that make me luckier than others.
After all, I’m in a warm bed, with a roof over my head, and food in my stomach. I have a job I love and while I’ve cut ties with all my old friends, I’m making new ones. Things could be worse.
It’s my last thought before exhaustion takes over, and I fall asleep.
Usually, I hate that feeling when you wake and it seems like only a few seconds have gone by, but I know it’s usually when I’ve slept the soundest, and I definitely needed it. That’s how it feels when sunlight strikes my eyes, and I throw my arm across my face. I’m not getting up yet. I’m warm and comfortable, and the arm wrapped around me is…wait.
I jerk to an upright position to see a very confused Denton staring at me with bleary eyes. “What the hell?” I exclaim, jerking back the covers to see I’m fully clothed in my yoga pants and tee.
Whew.
Trey picks that moment to fling open Denton’s bedroom door. “Hey Dent, I’m going to—” His words stop short as I scramble out of bed. Denton’s bed. I can’t believe this is happening. The urge to crawl under the bed and never come out is strong. “Sorry!” Trey exclaims, amusement ringing in his voice as he retreats, closing the door behind him.
“Becca?” Denton says, still trying to shake the sleep from his brain.
“I…don’t know how I got in here. I must have sleepwalked. I’m sorry. I—”
He sits up and a grin appears on his face. “Don’t freak out. It’s not a big deal. You’re attracted to me even in your sleep. Perfectly understandable.”
He snorts out a laugh when I give him a dirty look. “You were the one all wrapped around me.”
“Hey, if you climb in my bed, you’re going to get cuddled. That’s just how it is.” He gets up, and my cheeks heat when I realize he’s only wearing boxer briefs. How long was I lying with his half naked body pressed to mine?
My gaze sweeps over sculpted thighs and the faint outline of abs. Ugh, this guy is hot. All firm and lean and—
“Becca? If you don’t want to get back into my bed, you have to stop looking at me like that.”
Shit.
Rolling my eyes, I drag my gaze from him. “I’m not looking at you like anything.” Yeah, that hysterical pitch of my voice really isn’t helping my case.
He just grins at me as he pulls on some jeans, and I head for the door. “Becca,” he calls out as I open it.
Prepared to hear teasing or a proposition, I reluctantly glance back.
“It’s really no big deal, okay? Nothing happened. I didn’t even realize you were there until Trey came in.”
“Yeah, okay. Sorry for the rude awakening.” Before he can reply, I rush out and down the hall to my room.
I’ve always had issues with sleepwalking. When I was a teenager I’d often wake up in weird places like my closet or the floor, but this is the first time I sleepwalked my way into a man’s bed. I need to put a latch on my door or something.
That was so embarrassing.
Sasha texts and asks if I’d like to meet for coffee and getting the hell out of here sounds like a stellar idea. We make plans to meet in twenty minutes, giving me enough time to dress and throw my hair up into a messy pony tail. Screw it. It’s my day off. It’s not like I have anyone to impress today.
When I start toward the living room, I hear a female voice, followed by Trey asking, “So, Denton, quick question, what the fuck?”
“She was sleepwalking,” Denton says.
Great. They’re talking about me. And now I’m standing in the hall, eavesdropping like some creep.
“Bullshit,” Kenny snaps. “We had a deal. You just wanted to be the first to fuck her.”
Anger and embarrassment are my sudden companions. Why does Kenny think it’s any of his business if I slept with Denton and what the hell is this deal he mentioned? I don’t like being the topic of conversation, especially when I’m being accused of something that didn’t happen, not that it would matter if it did.
“I didn’t fuck her. She sleepwalked into my bed last night. Neither of us knew it until this morning.” I don’t know Denton all that well yet, but I can hear in his voice that he’s trying to keep his temper in check. I’m not sure why they’re friends with Kenny when he always seems to piss them both off.
“Oh wow, is she okay?” the female voice asks. It’s Jani, the woman I met when I first came to inquire about the room.
“I think so,” Denton says. “She seemed all right.”
Okay, I’m tired of listening to people who barely know me discuss me. Taking a deep breath, I step into the living room. “I’m fine. I’ll get a latch for my door, so it won’t happen again.”
“And I’ll leave my door open in case it does,” Kenny says.
My glare pins him to the couch, and I imagine setting him on fire with my eyes. “Even asleep, I have better taste than that.” I regard the three men. “And I don’t know what this deal is you were talking about but let me make this perfectly clear. I’m not fucking any of you.”
“Great, she’s a chick licker,” Kenny grumbles.
My head starts to thump. It’s been a long day and I just woke up. I really need some coffee and there’s no point in arguing with this idiot. “I’m not gay.” I nod at Jani. “But I’d dive into her fur pie before I’d get anywhere near your dick.”
“You don’t know what you’re passing up. I can fuck all night, go on for hours and hours.”
I grab my keys and double check I have my bank card in my pocket. “I’m not interested in endless shrimp.”
Jani chuckles, and I grin at her. “I’m going for coffee. Want to join me?”
“Sure, but you should know, my pie is not furry.”
We step outside into the sweltering August heat and head toward her car. “Sorry about that. Kenny pisses me off.”
“Are you kidding? That was great. You have to show him right from the beginning you won’t take any shit. You’re going to fit in just fine. I can’t wait to introduce you to Cass and Veronica.”
“Do they live on Violent Circle too?”
“No, they both used to. Cass has been busy with her new baby, and Veronica has her hands full with her boyfriend and their kids. Neither of them gets out much anymore.” She sounds a little forlorn. It sucks, but that seems to be what happens. Friends pair up and have kids, and everyone drifts apart.
“I haven’t met any of the neighbors, but I guess Denton is throwing a party tonight to introduce me.”
Jani’s smile stretches ear to ear. “Oh yeah, he’s already put the word out.”
We park at the little coffee shop and head inside, where Sasha waves fro
m a table in the corner. After ordering our drinks, we join her.
“Sasha, this is Jani, Jani, this is my friend Sasha. She works at Eternity Ink with me.”
Once the pleasantries are exchanged and we all have our coffee, I turn to Jani. “You said Denton put the word out about a party? He said it’d be small.”
Jani laughs. “Uh-huh. You can’t throw a small party on Violent Circle. The neighbors can smell a good time a mile away and flock to it like ants. Last time, a few idiots made a hot tub out of a kiddie pool and burn barrel. Someone always does something stupid. It’s always crazy, but so much fun.”
I glance at Sasha, my eyes growing big at the thought of being surrounded by a bunch of insane neighbors I don’t know. “Tell me you’re coming.”
“I wouldn’t miss it,” Sasha laughs.
“What do you do, Jani? Are you a student?” I ask.
“God no. School wasn’t for me. I manage the Scarlet Toys adult shop.”
“I’ll bet you get some interesting customers.”
“Girl, I have some stories, but it’s mostly normal people. It actually does well despite the small town we’re in. It was a struggle when we first opened. Protesters and stuff.”
My jaw drops as I’m struck by a realization. “Is this that place off the highway? With the pink sign?”
“Yeah, that’s it.” She tilts her head and studies me. “Why?”
“Ah…I remember when they tried to shut it down. I voted to let it stay.” And wouldn’t my parents have loved that if they knew.
Jani shakes her head. “A bunch of hypocrites. Half of those protestors creep in to buy stuff, and it’s usually the kinky shit. It’s amusing to know they all smile at each other in public and then go home to their latex clad husbands and vibrating butt plugs.”
Sasha almost chokes on her coffee, and I join in their laughter. There’s no way I’m telling them my mother was one of those protestors. She only went one day though, because she came down with a massive case of poison ivy and swore it was from being sprayed by a dinosaur. Even Dad didn’t know how to respond to that.
“So, you’re the sex toy expert. What do you think of those new clit sucking machines? I forget what they’re called,” Sasha asks. I should’ve expected that. She has even less of a filter than I do.
Jani grins and sips her coffee. “The Pulsator. It’s not like I test all the equipment, but I can tell you that one is worth every penny. They go on sale next week. You should stop in.”
“Absolutely.”
It’s nice, just hanging out and having some girl talk again. I’ve spent too much time alone or surrounded by guys. The friends I had since high school are long gone, from my life if not the area. The ones who did stay fell into hard drugs, pills and worse, and I just couldn’t stand to be around them anymore. Once I moved out of my parent’s house, I decided it was time for a clean slate. Time to start over and build the life I want. One filled with art and beauty, not judgment and pain.
Speaking of judgment. “Sasha, can you do me a favor and meet me at my Dad’s shop today? I need to drop off my car for him to look at.”
“Sure, we can go when we leave here if you want. What’s wrong with it?”
“I don’t know. I’m hoping it’s not the transmission, but it’s looking that way.”
“Oh no.”
“Yeah.”
Jani gets to her feet. “I have to go check on the store. I’ll see you two tonight at the party. I’m bringing Jell-O shots.”
“Oh, we’re going to be good friends,” I assure her.
Fortunately, we get to the shop before Dad does. He seems to open it whenever the hell he feels like it lately, and he’s been threatening to retire soon. I tuck the keys under the visor and send him a text letting him know it’s there.
Sasha drops me off at home with a promise to return tonight for the party, and I head inside, looking forward to a nap.
The front door is unlocked, and I’m in my own head, thinking about how screwed I’m going to be if my car needs a serious repair when I walk into what I thought was the living room, but has been transformed into my own little corner of hell.
Kenny sits on the couch, naked, beating his dick like it owes him money. That’s bad enough. I’m already scarred for life and planning to dump bleach into both my eyeballs to make sure I never see anything like this again. I open my mouth to alert him to the fact that he isn’t alone, but all that comes out is a squeak because I notice what’s playing on the giant TV.
There are things you expect to see when it comes to porn. MILF stuff, lesbians going at each other, gangbangs, maybe some BDSM. Nothing in my twenty-two years prepared me for the sight of a bright blue cartoon pony taking another pony cock up the ass.
Nothing.
My eyes are stuck to the screen as more ponies join the fun. It’s an equine orgy.
I’m frozen in place by a plethora of pastel pony peckers. What has happened to my life?
Panicking, I shout, “Ponies!”
Smooth. Perfect way to handle a horrible situation. I’m not sure there was a good way out of it but going back out the door could’ve been an option. Or running to my room. Anything other than screaming about the sight which shall never be spoken of again.
Who am I kidding? I’m telling somebody. I can’t possess such knowledge alone.
Kenny’s whole body jerks at the sound of my voice and the horror on his face must be reflected on my own. I finally find my brain and dart back out the door.
I make it to the sidewalk before I realize I don’t have my car. Shit. There’s no way I’m going back in there.
The park is deserted, probably because it’s nearly a hundred degrees and you could wring water out of the air. Still a better option than home.
I settle into a shady spot under a tree and proceed to sweat my way through the next hour until I hear a woman’s voice call out. “You’re the new girl, right? Living with those Frat Hell boys?”
A woman leans on the chain link fence, smiling at me. “It’s awfully hot out here. Would you like to come over for a glass of iced tea?”
No way I’m passing up that offer. I’m sweating from places I didn’t know could sweat. I give her a smile. “Hi, I’m Becca.”
“Samantha,” she replies as I join her. “Is everything okay?”
“Uh.” No, I saw a guy beating off to beloved cartoon characters. It was like watching Spongebob do Patrick. My childhood is ruined. “Yeah, I just needed to get out of the house for a bit.”
“Living with a bunch of college guys, I don’t doubt it.”
Samantha is older than me, probably pushing thirty, but she’s nice. We sit in her blissfully air conditioned kitchen and she fills me in on some of the crazy things that have happened in the neighborhood in the past.
“He was posing as a woman, then inviting men to climb through his window?” I sit back, stunned by her story.
“Yep. Poor Cassidy had more than one guy get the wrong apartment and scare the hell out of her. He finally moved, not long before she did.”
“That’s insane.” I finish off my glass of tea. “The guys are throwing a party tonight.”
“I know. I saw the flyer in the laundry room. I’ll be there.”
“They…put up a flyer?”
Samantha smiles at me. “There are no half assed parties on Violent Circle, honey. It’s best to just join in the fun.”
I notice Denton’s car drive past her window, and get to my feet, thanking her for the invitation and promising to see her tonight. Apparently, I’m going to meet the whole town tonight. Right now, I still want that nap, and I have to go home sometime.
Trey’s truck is parked at the apartment as well, and as soon as I get to the door, I can hear them arguing. I’ve turned into quite the eavesdropper since I moved in. Pausing, I wait to see what Kenny is going to tell him. Somehow, I doubt animated pony genitals will enter into the conversation.
“We are not kicking her out because she caught yo
u jacking off,” Trey says. “It’s your own fault.”
“Like she doesn’t know guys jack off? She looked at me like she caught me smothering a bunny or something,” Kenny whines.
“Maybe because you were smothering your bunny in the living room,” Denton says, and I swear I can hear the smile on his face.
“It isn’t funny! I want her out!”
“I’m sure if you act like nothing happened, she will too,” Trey says reasonably. “I doubt she wants to rehash the experience.”
I don’t give them a chance to continue. Making as much noise as possible, I open the door and walk in like nothing is amiss. “Hey,” I greet, on my way through the room. “I’m going to grab a nap before the party tonight.”
Ignoring Denton’s smirk and Kenny’s glare, I make a beeline for my room, closing the door behind me with a sigh of relief.
There’s one thing to be said about living with three guys. It’s never boring.
Laughter from the living room draws me out of my room where I find Trey, Denton, and Kenny gathered around a large cardboard box.
“Hey, you’re just in time. Help us crack these,” Trey says, holding up a glow stick. He cracks it and tosses it onto a pile of them on the floor.
The box is filled with plastic glowsticks in a rainbow of colors. What the hell? My question must’ve been reflected on my face.
“Kenny works at the party store. They were going to throw all these out because they ordered too many.”
“What are you going to do with that many glowsticks?” I ask.
Denton shrugs and the guys share a mischievous look between them. “Glowstick fight.”
“Of course, how silly of me not to realize.”
Kenny scowls. “Are you going to be a negative bitch all night?”
Okay, I’ve had it. I can’t believe he’s going to talk shit to me knowing what I saw. He wants to be a dick? I’m going to have some fun.
“Nope, I’m going to get drunk. I saw all the alcohol you guys bought in the kitchen. You must’ve spent a lot. Let me know how much I owe you, so I can pony up.” I stress the last two words. Kenny’s eyes widen, and his lips press together as I flash a grin at him.
“You don’t owe anything. We’re the ones throwing the party,” Denton says.
