BOMB

by Danielle James

  Through out the evening, everyone was shocked to see Cyrus and I holding each other and stealing long gazes. He didn’t waste any time explaining that we were together either. Once it was out in the open, everyone seemed accepting and it put my nerves to rest. Shit, I didn’t even realize I was nervous about people knowing I was with him until I was finally relieved.

  He’s too good for you.

  The toxic voice filtered in through all the laughter and gift exchanging happening in the living room in front of the fire. Somehow it managed to grow talons and snatch me out of my calm and happy moment. I hated it. It knew how to ruin everything in seconds.

  Cyrus must have noticed the look on my face. He rubbed my knee and motioned for me to follow him into the kitchen while everyone else talked. “What’s wrong, Bellamy? You’re doing that thing where you disappear into your head.”

  I was wondering if everyone thinks you’re too good for me,” I confessed, chewing on my bottom lip.

  “No. Nobody thinks that. Stop letting that voice in your head get to you. I’m not too good for you. We’re the same. Trust me.” He kissed the back of my hand and said, “People see a mask when they look at me. You see the real me. You bring the real me out when he’s hiding behind a fake halo.”

  The more I listened to Cyrus talk, the more it sounded like he hated having to put up a front and live behind a halo. He wanted to curse and make bad decisions without an entire community holding him to an impossible standard. He wanted to be a good guy but it would never happen if he didn’t let himself be a little bad too.

  “If I bring out the real you, then why don’t you ever let him stay when other people are around? You turn back into Pastor Cyrus instead of…”

  “Cyrus the Savage?” He chuckled dryly.

  “Is that an old nickname or something?”

  “Pax used to call me that when we were younger. When I was much more carefree and not so buttoned down,” he explained.

  “Well, let’s make a deal. If I put my toxic voice in its place then you’ll put your halo in its place too. Okay?” He seemed to like my proposal. He nodded then gave me a hug.

  When we joined the festivities in the living room, Cyrus clapped his hands together and a hush fell over everyone as they stared up at him. “Before we wrap things up and I let you get back to your families, I have a question.” He connected with every person in the room, looking them all in their eyes making them feel special. He had that knack. He could connect with anyone.

  “If I were to leave Cross Point and start a youth outreach program not affiliated with the church…how many of you would follow me?” A thrill raced through me. I could see Cyrus’ wheels turning and they were producing amazing ideas.

  There was a unanimous show of hands and it made him beam with a beautiful smile. “Okay, thank you. That’s all I needed to know.” Of course, there were tons of questions being tossed around and Cyrus gave vague answers for the time being and assured everyone in the youth group that he’d give them something more concrete later.

  “Hey, Crimson, can you stick around for a few extra minutes?” I asked as everyone rushed out of the door. She put her coat down and nodded, her long hair swaying and falling around her face.

  “If she’s staying, I’m staying,” Declan declared, putting his coat back too. I rolled my eyes and pushed out a sharp exhale.

  “All of a sudden you care about Crimson? You’re such a dick.”

  “Woah, what happened to the nice Bellamy? I like her better. Besides, Crimson knows I care. Sometimes it just comes across weird.” He stared at her and tucked a lock of hair behind her ear making her face go all red. I looked from Crimson to Declan and smirked.

  “Um…someone want to tell me something?” I asked, gesturing between them.

  “What? Me and Dec? No. Never,” Crimson laughed and turned away quickly. It was too late. I’d already seen her blushing like a girl with a crush. I was getting ready to really turn the heat on those two but Pax was at the door and he had gifts.

  “Merry Christmas Eve, family!” He walked in and set his bags down then gave me a hug.

  I bum-rushed him.

  “Hi, Pax,” I grinned. I’d grown to adore him like a brother. He made it hard not to since he was always around. Besides, he wanted the best for Cyrus and he made it evident. I loved that about him.

  “What’s up, Halle Berry? What’s up, Cy!” They slapped hands and Pax made his way to the living room. “I brought yall some gifts today because I’m not gonna be around tomorrow. Believe it or not, I actually have a real family and shit.”

  “Do you?” I laughed. “I thought you perpetually hung out over here and got high,” I deadpanned.

  “You would think that but no.” His dark eyes slid over to Crimson and Declan on the couch but he honed in on Crimson. “Hey, what’s going on? I’m Paxton.” He held his hand out to Crimson and she shook it with a smile that got bigger by the second.

  “Hi, I think I’ve seen you at Cross Point a few times,” she said. He still wouldn’t let her hand go and she wasn’t exactly trying to pull back.

  “Yeah, only when Cy drags me. What’s your name?” He asked her, still holding firm to her hand.

  “Crimson,” she said. “I know, I know…you don’t have to make fun of it.” She held her face down and finally Pax let her hand go, but only to tip her chin up.

  “Why would I make fun of it? It’s really fucking cool. Us people with cool ass names have to stick together, Crimson.”

  “Thanks, Pax,” she giggled a little and squirmed in her seat.

  Go, Pax. Who knew he could flirt his ass off? It worked like a charm too because Crimson couldn’t stop stealing glances at him while he talked to Cyrus. Declan, on the other hand, turned sullen.

  “So…as much as I adore you, Bellamy, why’d you ask me to stay?” Crimson noticed Declan’s icy exterior too so she decided talking to me would be the safest bet. She was probably right.

  “I need to talk to you. I didn’t expect to have such an audience.” I looked around at Declan, Pax, and Cyrus.

  “We can take a walk. Seems like I’ll be catching the train alone.” She eyed Declan and he pretended not to see her death stare because he was so into his phone. Bullshit.

  Pax perked up a bit and leaned in our direction. Eavesdropping ass. “You need a ride after you leave here, Crimson?” He asked.

  “She’s good. We were gonna catch the train together.” Declan finally got his head out of his ass long enough to speak up.

  “You sure?” Pax ignored Declan completely and watched for an answer from Crimson.

  “I’ll let you know when we get back from our walk,” Crimson said.

  “Cool.” Pax relaxed in his seat and went back to his conversation with Cyrus. Crimson couldn’t yank me out the house fast enough.

  “Oh my god. First of all, why is Pastor Cyrus’ friend so fine? Like, I’ve never been with an Asian guy before but I’m all for trying new things. Especially when new things look like him.”

  “Pax is fine as fuck. On another note, what’s up with you and Declan? He clearly likes you,” I pointed out.

  “He likes everyone. He’s a flirt. I don’t pay him any attention.” She waved her hand in the air and I saw white flakes starting to float to the ground.

  “It’s snowing,” I mused with a smile.

  “Maybe we’ll get a white Christmas,” Crimson gushed. She got so excited about everything. It was adorable. “So, what did you want to talk about? My aunt is going to bitch at me if I’m too late especially since it’s snowing.”

  “Right. I wanted to know if you’d be willing to talk to Cyrus about what Wilson did to you and if you know of any other women he’s harassed or touched…or worse,” I said, swallowing back.

  Crimson’s gaze dropped to the sidewalk and she slowed in her stride. “What if he doesn’t believe me, Bellamy? I know you’ve probably spoken to him and he believes you but I’m not you.”

  “It doesn’t matte
r, Crimson. If he touched you then he needs to pay for that shit. If you know he’s touched other girls then you need to at least tell them someone is willing to listen.

  I know it’s tough but…” Suddenly, thoughts of my mother came rushing to the forefront of my mind. I wondered how scared she was to come forward. I wondered if she came forward and Joan ignored her because she was so busy opening her legs to Wilson that she turned a blind eye. Everything made my chest ache with sympathy.

  It was a new sensation for me and god it hurt.

  “If it helps bring him down then it has to be done,” I told Crimson.

  “I’ll talk to Pastor Cyrus and I guess I can talk to some of the other girls in the youth group too. I know for a fact he’s done things to them and some other women in Cross Point. He’s awful. I’m scared though, Bellamy. What about retaliation?” She looked at me with those big, doe eyes and I sighed, taking her gloved hand in mine.

  “Fuck him. He can’t retaliate from jail. He doesn’t have that kind of range. Believe me.” She gave me an earnest nod and I smiled at her.

  “Hey, Bellamy, thank you for being my friend.” When she hugged me, I didn’t know what to do. I was stunned for a moment. I didn’t get hugs from friends very often…especially girls.

  After a few beats, I hugged her back because I figured that’s what you do with hugs. “This might sound weird but I’ve never had a friend before. You’re going to have to bear with me.”

  “I can tell. It’s okay. So far you’re doing fine.” She patted my shoulder and we headed back to the house. The snow was starting to pick up. “Okay, so before we go back inside…train with Dec or ride with Pax?” She clasped her hands together under her chin and looked at me.

  “Oh god, please don’t ask me,” I laughed. “You really think I’m a good decision maker? I’m fucking the youth pastor.”

  “He’s fine though and he’s amazingly sweet. Seems like a good decision to me.” Crimson shrugged.

  “Well, he’s the first good decision I ever made.” I looked up at the gray sky and then at Crimson. “Has Declan ever told you that he likes you?” I asked.

  “No. Never. He just plays around a lot and flirts with me. When he’s in a good mood he’s nice but for the most part, what you see is what you get.”

  “Then maybe if you ride with Pax, it’ll shake some sense into him. If not…you really can’t lose with Pax. He’s fucking hilarious and he always has weed.”

  “Pax is so damn fine.” Crimson pushed out a breath and shook her head.

  “Sounds like you made your choice,” I laughed before we walked back inside.

  “Is it snowing out there?” Cyrus hurried over to me and took my coat then warmed my freezing hands between his. My heart just about popped.

  “Yeah, it’s still light though,” Crimson said. Pax was busy flipping through movies on Netflix while Crimson was busy staring at him. Declan, on the other hand, was staring at Crimson. It was a clusterfuck, to say the least.

  “Yo, Crimson, you need that ride?” Pax couldn’t make that sound innocent if his life depended on it.

  “Yeah, I think I’ll take you up on that, Pax. Thank you. Declan, I’ll text you when I get home. You seem to be in a bad mood anyway.” Declan stood up and walked out of the house. He didn’t say a word to anyone else. The only goodbye he gave was the thud of the front door.

  Cyrus grumbled something under his breath then went after him. See? He was so good. I would have let Declan’s crybaby ass go. Not my man though. He had to fix it.

  Pax seemed to be on the same page as me because he didn’t give Declan a second thought. He headed to the front door and aimed his long finger at me. “Don’t fucking touch those presents until I get back, Bellamy.”

  “Oh, I’m not Halle Berry when you’re putting your foot down, huh?” I smirked.

  “Nah. When I’m being stern I have to use your real name.” He winked and I swear I saw Crimson blush a little.

  The second they were out of the house, I peeked out of the window to make sure they were in the car safely, then I went over to the presents and poked at them a little. There were two for me and two for Cyrus. Knowing Pax, they could have been anyfuckingthing.

  “Leave those presents alone until Pax gets back,” Cyrus’ voice startled me and I spun around to smile at him like I wasn’t just ignoring Pax’s rules.

  “I was straightening them up,” I laughed.

  “I don’t know who you were fooling with your lies before but you can’t lie for shit, Bellamy.”

  “Whatever. Did you talk to Declan’s pouty ass?”

  “A little. He’ll be okay but he needs to realize he can’t claim a girl in his head and expect for her to follow suit.”

  “Exactly,” I sighed, shaking my head. Cyrus pulled me down so that I was sitting on his lap, then he kissed my shoulder.

  “He needs to be more like me and claim his woman out loud. I don’t know though, Pax seemed to like Crimson. Once he sets his sights on someone, that’s a wrap.”

  “Battle to the death,” I punched the air with my fist and Cyrus shook his head before yanking my arm down and kissing my lips. We might have had a little time to squeeze in a little quickie before Pax got back too.

  Who the fuck am I kidding?

  He fucked the shit out of me in front of the fireplace and it was glorious.

  ***

  Cyrus

  Christmas day was bittersweet for me. I expected to have Brianna with me but that was a total bust. I tried to call Kim but as usual, she sent me straight to voicemail. I couldn’t even wish Bri a Merry Christmas.

  It wasn’t completely bitter though because I woke up beside Bellamy. I actually woke up with my dick in her mouth because when my girl does Christmas, she does it right. She slid her plump lips up and down my thick shaft caressing every vein she could find with her tongue. I don’t think I ever came three minutes after waking up before.

  We took turns opening presents in front of the fireplace and every time I saw her smile, I lit up inside. Out of all the gifts I got her, the most important one was the new iPhone.

  She looked at it and gave me a hug then said, “I already have a phone, babe.”

  “It’s a phone paid for by someone else. You need your own phone,” I said.

  “This is…mine?” She grinned a little harder.

  “It’s all yours. Soon as you activate it and set up service, you’ll have a bill coming and everything.” She didn’t respond with words. She responded with squeals of happiness. Most women would have been pissed to get a phone that they had to pay for but Bellamy wanted everything in her name because she was determined not to have a man finance her life ever again.

  “If you want, I can put you on my plan…”

  “Fuck that. I want the bill. I want all the bills,” she grinned.

  “If you ever need any help, let me know. Promise?”

  “I promise, Cyrus.” We locked pinkies and I used the opportunity to pull her in for a kiss.

  “Okay, let’s go. My parents got me a few things and they will threaten bodily harm if I don’t show up on their doorstep on Christmas day. I told them I was bringing you. Are you okay with that?” It wasn’t like I hadn’t told her that I planned to visit my parents for Christmas but I had to double check because sometimes, Bellamy’s mind changed at the slightest blow of the wind. It was especially true if that little voice in her head ran wild.

  “It’s fine. I’m a little nervous.” She started biting on her bottom lip and I cupped her face in my hands.

  “My parents are incredibly laid back. My mom is a trip but she’s cool. You’ll like her. Now go get dressed in something sexy and let’s go.”

  “Sexy? Shouldn’t I wear something modest?” She asked. Her nose crinkled when she frowned and it was fucking adorable.

  “Do you have anything modest?” I laughed a little.

  “Maybe…”

  “Well, whatever you wear will be sexy because you’re sexy as fuck.
”

  “Pastors can’t say fuck.” She nibbled on my lips while her hands found my cock stiffening in my pants.

  “Well, I’m not a fucking pastor anymore so I can say what the fuck I want to say,” a smirk tugged at one side of my mouth.

  “You’ve officially made the decision to leave Cross Point?” She asked me with big eyes.

  “Yup. I told you, I can’t be anywhere that a predator is allowed to run free. As soon as the holidays are over, I’m going to do everything I can to bring him down.”

  “I’m glad you’re doing what’s right for you,” she smiled. “Now, help me pick out something modest to wear to your parents’ house.” She modeled several outfits before I picked out the red skirt and black blouse. All I could imagine was hiking that skirt up over her hips and pounding into her when we snuck off in Mom and Dad’s house.

  I didn’t start off worried about Bellamy meeting my parents but once we pulled into their driveway, the anxiety started to kick in full-force. I’d never brought home someone I was in love with. I’d been in serious relationships but never this deep in love.

  My parents’ house was the same as it had always been. The kitchen smelled like food, there was music playing everywhere, and Dad was busy stealing food when Mom wasn’t looking.

  “Cyrus!” Mom rushed over to me with open arms and a flour-dusted apron on. “Hey, mom. Where’s Dad?” I hugged her and then broke our embrace so I could introduce Bellamy.

  “Stealing food like I don’t know what he’s doing,” she called over her shoulder. Like magic, Dad appeared. The gray at his temples was the first and last sign of his age.

  He held the biggest smile and gave out equally big hugs. He welcomed Bellamy like he’d known her forever. Mom stood back for a few moments observing Bellamy before she gave her a hug.

  After that, Bellamy was in there. Mom invited her into the kitchen while me and Dad hung out in the living room. “She’s beautiful, son. I mean she’s bad.” He glanced over his shoulder into the kitchen and I smiled. Pride swelled inside my chest until it threatened to break free.