His hands feel so good on me, even like this. “Okay.” I exhale softly, trying to let the guilt leave me. “Thank you again for rushing to my defense.”
“Anything for you, Adds.” The way he says that just does something to me. Makes me feel all fluttery inside. Everything he does to me makes me feel that way. “You know that, right?”
I nod, my mouth dry, and I let him pull me in closer. Until he’s got me wrapped up in a solid, warm hug, his arms around me, his hands splayed across my back. I do the same, slipping my arms around his waist, clinging to him, my face pressed against his chest. I take a deep breath, inhaling his clean, masculine scent and…
Yeah. I don’t want this moment to ever end.
Not sure how long we stand there in each other’s arms, but I hear a noise. A door opening. A woman’s voice.
“Beck? Are you still out here?”
We let each other go, Beck turning to face his house. His mom.
“I’m still out here with Addie, Mom.” His voice is tinged with the faintest irritation.
I cover my mouth to muffle the laugh.
“Oh.” The front porch lights blaze on, casting their massive lawn in golden light. “Hey, Addie.”
I see her wave from the porch.
“Hi, Mrs. Callahan,” I say to her, waving back.
“We’ve known each other a long time, Addison. You can call me Fable,” she says.
Beck sends me a look, rolling his eyes. Another giggle escapes me.
“Go back inside, Mom,” he tells her, but it’s not in a mean way. His voice is full of affection, though with a hint of annoyance still. I know he’s close to his mom.
“Come in soon, okay? Bye, Addie!” She shuts the door, but leaves on those bright lights, which I don’t mind because at least I can see Beck.
The sky has darkened, turning a velvety black and purple shade, and I sit on the street curb, staring upward. A few stars are twinkling, but not many, and I hold my breath when Beck settles onto the curb next to me, his shoulder brushing mine.
“Are you sure your parents aren’t mad at you about the fight?” I ask. “I didn’t tell my mom about it.”
She would lose her mind if she knew Beck got suspended because he was fighting another boy over me. It all falls into her serious relationships are nothing but trouble theory and she’d most likely ban me from seeing Beck ever again.
I can’t risk it.
He glances over at me. “It’s more like they’re disappointed. No one has been suspended before. It’s a first in the Callahan house. My mom said she never suspected I’d be the one to get in trouble like this.”
My role in this situation makes me feel bad. “Your mom is right. You’ve never been problematic. You don’t get in fights.”
“Until yesterday,” he reminds me.
“Right. Until yesterday.” I gaze up at the sky, spotting a few new stars twinkling. “Are your parents mad at me? I mean, they might be, since I’m the reason you got into a fight with Liam in the first place.”
He chuckles, the warm sound settling low in my stomach. “Nah, they’re not mad at you. I’m my own person who can make my own decisions. They don’t blame you for anything.”
Relief floods me and I smile at him. “Okay. Good.”
“Yeah.” He smiles at me.
I smile back, my mood lighter, and I decide to change the subject. I’m tired of talking about the fight, and I’m sure he is too. “Not much else happened today at school. By lunch they’d stopped gossiping about you guys. They were talking about Marcus and Monique.”
I feel him stiffen slightly. “What about them?”
“Monique keeps chasing after him and Marcus claims he’s not interested. It’s making Emma so mad. She said she’s going to knock Monique out like you did Liam, if she doesn’t watch it.”
It was all Emma could focus on today, and I got tired of hearing her complain, so I eventually tuned her out.
Does this make me a crappy friend? She knew what she was getting into, trying it again with Marcus when he was still occasionally hooking up with Monique. That has complete disaster written all over it.
“What a mess,” Beck mutters, shaking his head before tipping it back to stare at the sky like I still am. “Lots of drama going on.”
“And it was only the fourth day of school.”
“Maybe we’re getting it all out at the beginning of our senior year. Then it’ll be smooth sailing until we graduate,” he suggests.
“Huh. Maybe.” A girl can wish, but maybe he’s on to something. I don’t want any drama in my life. It’s stressful, and while I know I can’t avoid it completely, I do think the main problem I have right now is Liam.
And Emma.
My mom.
Okay, fine. That’s a lot of drama.
We’re quiet as the sky rapidly darkens, until the stars are twinkling high above us. The moon is a thin sliver, allowing the stars to shine brighter, and there’s a cool breeze off the lake that washes over us.
“Can you go to the game Friday?” I finally ask.
“Yeah, I just can’t play. Sucks. Dad spoke to Adney and asked if I can be on the sidelines. She said yes.” He sighs. “At least it’s an away game.”
“Too bad it’s not a scrimmage.” I’m teasing him. I hope he realizes it.
From the smile on his face when he looks over at me, he does. “Yeah. Should’ve smashed Liam’s face in last week.”
“I wish I could go.” I’m excited for our last Mammoth tournament though. Every year our coach reserves camping spots for us and the entire team stays there in tents. It’s a great bonding experience for us and I always feel closer to the girls afterwards. It’s how Emma and I got so close to Tori last year.
“I’ll miss seeing you there,” Beck admits.
“I’ll miss watching you.” I press my shoulder against his and he glances down at me with a gentle smile.
My phone rings from inside my car. I can hear it since the driver’s side window is still rolled down. The ringing stops, then immediately starts back up again.
“Someone’s trying to find you,” Beck says.
“Maybe I should go look at who it is.” I hate that they’ve interrupted our moment, but what else is new?
Moments with Beck are always getting interrupted.
I go to my car and check my phone to see it’s Emma calling. When I answer, she’s already talking.
Crying.
“I hate you! Oh my God, get away from me!” she screams at someone.
“Emma? What’s going on?” Concern fills me when I hear her sobs, and I lean against my car.
“I j-just caught M-Marcus with that w-whore!” she wails.
My stomach sinks. She doesn’t even have to say a name. “Oh my God.”
“He had his hands all o-over her!” The sobs dry up and she screams. I pull the phone away from my ear. “He is such an asshole! He told me they were done.”
Clearly, he was lying.
“I’m so sorry, Em. Where are you?”
“Still at the school! We’ve been arguing in the parking lot.”
“Where’s Monique?”
“Her shady ass took off the minute I caught them. She didn’t stick around.” Emma laughs, but she sounds borderline hysterical. “She’s lucky. I would’ve beat her into a pulp if she stayed.”