by J. P. Uvalle
“You know what else would feel nice?” Slowly and steadily, his hands trailed down from my waist to my ass.
“What?” I breathed, closing my eyes, my reality and fantasy playing side by side. The image of Darren took over my mind, and a need for the intimacy I had yet to experience bubbled low in my belly as his hands clutched tightly onto my behind.
Chase leaned closer his breath hot against my ear, the smell of his earthy cologne invading my nostrils. “Me, fucking your tight little pussy all night.”
Oh, God! My fingers dug into his shoulders and a wildfire spread across my skin with an ache pulsating between my thighs. A vivid movie of Darren on top of me played, him rocking his hips into mine repeatedly. Earnestly. Taking all I had to give. My ever-growing obsession consumed every nerve in my body. I bit my lip, craving for a taste of a guy I could never have. That was one thing about Chase; he knew how to awaken the animal inside me.
Chapter Two
Darren
I took a large pull from the tequila bottle. “Melody.” Her name rolled off my tongue again and again, but this time when I said it, somehow it felt different. When she’d come down the stairs earlier tonight, in that red dress, my chest muscles seized up, and it felt like I had been tackled to the ground by a two-hundred-pound linebacker. It took every ounce inside me not to spring a tent in my pants. For fuck’s sake, her mom was standing right next to me. I hadn’t realized until then that she had such a deliciously curvaceous body underneath all that hostility. She’d worn the same Marvel hoodie and ripped jeans the majority of high school, so I never took a second glance at her. Plus, Melody had always been like one of the guys. Man, could the girl belch like nobody’s business. But tonight, seeing her assets on full display sent an electric current through me. My baby girl was all grown up now, and I had barely noticed.
Chase certainly had though, and just imagining them together on the dance floor, his hands all over her, made my heart twist into a knot.
Maybe if I had been smarter and had not spent so much spent trying to make a relationship work with that fucking bitch, Suzanna, I would have been a better friend to Melody and noticed the eye-pleasing changes. Maybe we could’ve been more. However, it was too late for us now. I could’ve done a lot of things differently. Suzanna... she was no good for me. We had nothing in common, I reminded myself. Couldn’t afford to repeat history a third time. Back then, the dick wanted what the dick wanted I guess. Until I found out that I wasn’t the only dick she was screwing. When I saw her at the party, I played it cool like I always did, but what she did to me cut deep, fucking slaughtered my soul. I was so tired of being hung up on this girl as if she were an addiction I couldn’t shake. Maybe it was because Suzanna was my first? I didn’t know. I just knew I couldn’t allow myself to fall for another girl like that again.
Not even Melody.
I took another swig, drowning out my surroundings. My football buddies were laughing and talking while I just stood there, nodding but not giving two fucks what they were saying. The bottle was a temporary fix for my problems, and the numbness felt damn good. Luckily, the Tesla had an autopilot function, or we would be spending the night here, and I definitely didn’t want that considering Chase had been trying to get into Melody’s pants since her freshman year. When the thought of them fucking crossed my mind, I got a sour taste in my mouth. No! She was my date, and it was our turn to dance.
“Hey, bro, where are you going?” One of my buddies called.
I didn’t answer.
I marched into the living room in search of my light in the darkness. I needed my best friend. Spending time with Melody did seem to make time stand still and made me forget how empty I felt inside. I was going to miss this. Her. I never wanted the night to end, to say goodbye. Unfortunately, I couldn’t delay the inevitable. All I could do now was make the most of our time and stop drowning myself in a pool of sorrow. My demons would be back to haunt me soon enough.
When I spotted them in the middle of the dance floor, they were so close, their bodies gelled together, and I froze like ice. My breathing picked up, anger and envy infected my veins, and my eyes widened with laser focus, sobering me. He was whispering something into her ear, and she reacted by digging her nails into his shoulders. What the fuck? Gritting my teeth, I shoved a couple of people out of my way. “Fight me,” I dared them. They knew better though. Good for them. Looks like I’m just in time. I could only imagine what he must have been saying to her being the biggest perv I knew, hell, I got my first porno magazine from him. So, Chase taking Melody’s innocence, tainting her goodness, was not an option. No man on this earth deserved her.
Not even me.
I tapped her on the shoulder. “May I cut in?”
“Damn, dawg, busy here,” he growled. I could take him if I had to, even though he had weight and experience on me. I was fast and ruthless. They didn’t call me Darren “Right Hook” Hayes for nothing.
“It’s okay. Chase. Maybe later.” She gave me a bright smile almost as if she was relieved to see me.
Chase scoffed and immediately found a new victim to love on. Thank God. I really didn’t want to get in it with him tonight. The tension in my muscles evaporated when Melody’s tiny frame molded into mine as I held her close, saving her sweet floral smell to my memory. “Was he a gentleman?”
Her chocolate brown eyes found mine. “Chase was being Chase. But you don’t have to worry. I’m a big girl. I can handle him.”
“I know. You’re a real spitfire.”
She giggled. “I have to be to keep up with you.”
A chuckle erupted from my throat. “Me? And this whole time I thought it was the other way around.”
A fast-paced song blared over the speakers, and she turned her back to me. “Well, in that case, I hope you can keep up.” The bass vibrated between us as Melody seductively ground her ass against my groin, the friction building up blood flow in my cock. Melody, what are you doing to me? Her moves and her smell intoxicated me. Pulling her closer, she continued to grind against me harder. Faster. I groaned, closing my eyes. The urge to let my hands roam all up and down her curves was dizzying me. Chase was onto something. Having her this close was like the ultimate drug—I was getting high just from her teasing me with her round ass. I craved more, needed more. But it would be selfish of me to start something I couldn’t finish.
Melody
The liquor in my system lowered my inhibitions and turned my confidence level up to one hundred. I wouldn’t have dared dance with Darren like this otherwise. But with his cock pressing into me, and his hands lingering in places they shouldn’t, I floated above the clouds, my heart singing. It felt right. And, I had no intention of stopping.
“Where did you learn how to dance like this, huh?” His fingers clenched onto my waist, and I bit back a moan.
“Maybe I’m a natural.”
“June wedding. Twerking...you’re full of surprises tonight.”
“Stay tuned.”
“Oh, I intend to.”
The song picked up. So, did I. Then a rush of cold hit me, and liquid trickled down the front of my dress. “Oops, my bad,” some blonde chick I remembered from school said, walking past.
“Oops, my bad. Seriously?” I was completely drenched in what smelt like beer.
“Watch where you are going next time, bitch,” Darren yelled after her. She answered with her finger in the air and pivoted around to force her tongue down some poor guy's throat.
“Ugh, gross.” We shook our heads in disgust.
“I’ll be back, okay.”
He nodded, nostrils flaring. Darren continued to give the blonde chick an evil glare. If looks could kill…
Little did the blonde know she was on Darren's shit list for the rest of the evening. He was one to hold a grudge too.
Finding my way through the crowd, I came across the bathroom at the end of the hall. I walked in and attempted to lock it, but the knob was broken. I shrugged and went rummaging throug
h the cabinet doors to find a clean towel. The door creaked behind me, and I stood up to find Suzanna standing there, her face flushed crimson. Her posse trickled in behind her, and one leaned against the door as if to guard it.
I slowly turned around to take the full-blown wrath smoking from her gunmetal eyes.
“What do you guys want?” I gulped, realizing I had been set up, and the blonde was in on it. The palpitations of my heart drummed in my ears.
She closed the gap between us, towering over me. “I saw you out there, you little slut. What kind of game do you think your playing, huh? He’s never gonna want you, you fugly bitch.”
I lifted my head, staring dead into her piercing eyes. My momma didn’t raise no punk. “Doesn’t look like he wants you either, especially after what you did.” My liquid courage came out with a slur. I really was a lightweight. “You’re jus' a dirty whore that sleeps around with anything that moves.” To this day, she blamed me for their break-up, said I was the one who ratted on her to Darren, when actually, it was her friend with the nose ring standing right behind her. She wanted a piece of Darren, just like every other girl jam-packed inside this damn bathroom, but none of them would ever care about him the way I did. He was more than just a hot piece of ass.
His heart was beautiful.
His soul, unmatched.
I don’t have time for this. I stumbled past her, but she blocked me and pushed me into the counter. My world spun, making it hard to focus on the pack of wolves in front of me.
“What the fuck did you say to me, bitch?” Her warm breath laced with tequila stung my eyes.
“I called you a dirty whore, now move out of my way.” I pushed back only to be met with the back of her hand. Heat radiating through me spiked adrenaline in my veins. No one hit me and got away with it. Using the counter to regain my footing, I rose and swung forward with my right, she blocked me, and I countered, punching her square in the jaw with my left. What do you know? Darren's training has finally paid off.
Everyone's eyes went wide as Suzanna stumbled backward, one of her heels snapped off, and she fell to the ground with a loud thud. A cacophony of angry screams followed, filling the space around me. Her posse charged at me in a fury, fists bombarding my face and body with crushing blows. Air was forced out of my lungs as red filled my vision, my stomach muscles recoiling as bile rose in my throat. The last thing I remembered was seeing my bloodied face in the mirror before everything went dark. I never should have agreed to come to this party.
Chapter Three
Darren
I looked down at my watch. “What is taking her so long?” A nagging feeling of dread pulled at my gut, and I pushed my way through the crowd in search of her. Instead, I found Chase. “Have you seen Melody?”
He shook his head and went back to slobbering all over some poor girl’s neck. Damn, dude, I shook my head. In the hall, the bathroom light was on, but the door was closed, so I knocked. “Melody?”
No answer.
My hand wrapped around the knob, it was unlocked, so I opened it. “Melody? Are you in he—” Oh, my God! I dropped down to the floor on my knees, as my heart sank into the pit of my stomach. Melody was unconscious, slouched up against the wall, her face covered in blood. Glass was all over the floor. From the mirror. Rage boiled within me when I looked up to see the broken mirror, her blood on it. It wasn’t hard to figure out what went on here, and I knew exactly who to blame.
The door swung open, and I spun around with my fists in the air.
“Right Hook, calm down, it’—” Chase's gaze fell to the floor where Melody lay. “Fuck, dude. What the hell happened here?” Anger flared in his eyes. My football buddies appeared behind him. With one look at her and they all tensed up, their fists balled up at their sides in a war stance like soldiers ready for battle.
“I’m about to find out. Chase, stay with her. Don’t let anyone in this bathroom.” He nodded, ran a washcloth under the faucet, and kneeled down to tend to her wounds. My buddies cleared the door, allowing me to lead, just like old times on the football field. But this time, more was at stake. “Let’s handle this.” Bloodhounds on the hunt, we searched for the loud-mouthed ex-cheerleader with fake boobs to match her personality, dressed up as Santa’s elf. Bingo. I threaded my hand through Suzanna's auburn hair and yanked her backward.
“Ow, you jerk. If this is your idea of foreplay, I’m not into it.” She attempted to pry my hands off. No such luck. She hobbled along next to me.
“Shut up, bitch.” I flung her in the direction of the bathroom. “Did you do this shit?”
When the tears immediately sprung from her eyes, I knew she was guilty one way or another. She put her hands up. “Darren, I didn’t. Plea—”
I punched the wall behind her, making her cower as I closed the gap between us—my words laced with venom and hate. “Don’t you fucking lie to me, Suzanna.”
“I’m not lying, I swear.” Her make up streaked down her cheeks, making her look more like a clown than an elf.
What did I ever see in you? She was gorgeous, yes. Had legs for days, check. But on the inside—pure ugliness. Maybe I felt because I was quarterback, and she was captain of the cheer squad that it was an unwritten law we were supposed to be together. What a waste of my time.
Melody
When I came to, everything was blurry, and the side of my face was cold. There was yelling, lots of yelling, and maybe crying, and a guy's voice, but I could barely make out the words. On one side of me, a face came into view, and I blinked a few times to help clear my vision. What felt like a hand touched my other cheek, and I winced.
“Its gonna be okay, baby girl. We got you.” They whispered.
Chase? My head was throbbing and hurt like hell. The lights blinding me certainly didn’t help the situation.
“Don’t fucking lie to me, Suzanna.”
“Darren?” I coughed.
His head snapped in my direction. “Melody?” His shoulders dropped, and a look of relief replaced his war face.
Suzanna tried to hobble back into the hallway, but the steady line of footballers blocked her escape. Good luck trying to get through them.
Chase enclosed me in his arms and gently lifted me, supporting my weight until I found my footing. I couldn’t bear to look in the mirror, but I could feel a cut on my forehead and one on my left cheek.
“Let me go, please,” Suzanna pleaded.
“Not until you confess.”
They continued to argue, and their voices seemed to amplify the aching pain consuming my body. I clutched my hands over my head. “Stop,” I choked out. “She started it but didn’t finish it. The squad did.”
“Hell, nah.” Chase and the line of football players vanished from our sight. Soon there was a loud commotion of hollers and screams in the living room and more glass breaking.
My tears rolling down my cheeks stung. Whatever was happening out there wasn’t good, and I didn’t want to be around when the cops showed up. “I wanna leave. Now.”
“Yeah. Of course.” Darren shoved past Suzanna, who was now frozen in the corner, one side of her hair tangled into a large knot. Darren put his arm around my waist and helped me to the doorway. “One thing before we go. Isn’t there something you need to say, Suzanna?” Darren's eyes narrowed.
She gulped as more tears ran down her face. “I’m sorry, Melody.”
I stared at her, blinking for a moment, surprised she didn’t fight back the words. Was she really sorry, or was she so shaken up she would’ve said anything? “Just so you know. It was Chelsea that snitched on you. Not me,” I delivered the verbal blow.
Her jaw went slack, and betrayal marred her face. Priceless. Goes to show you never know who your real friends are until they’ve stabbed you in the back. Her chest rose and fell, that infamous snarl evaporated her tears, and she darted down the hallway, broken heel and all. We followed behind her on our way to the door. The gang had the girls surrounded, taunting and teasing them, giving them a taste
of their own medicine. Suzanna walked up to Chelsea and ripped out her nose ring. “You lying bitch. It was you.” The best of friends were now sworn enemies as they went to pull each other’s hair. I’d had enough violence for one evening, but a smile of satisfaction swept across my face knowing the mighty empire Suzanna thought she had was crumbling.
Darren had convinced my mom to let me stay the night at his house. There was no way I was going home looking like this. She would lose her shit the minute she saw me and would make it her life's mission to make every single one of those girls pay. I needed to buy some time. Plus, his mom was the town doctor, so we had a well-stocked first aid at our disposal. I was in good hands.
I sat on the counter while Darren grabbed an ice pack out of the freezer and wrapped it in a towel. He gently moved a lock of my hair out of the way and placed the ice pack over my eye. “Your mom is going to kill me.”
“Yeah, she’s gonna skin you alive and wear you as a coat when she gets a look at this shiner.”
He blew out a breath. “Fucking bitches.” He rubbed the length of his face, fear etching his features.
I gently clasped my hand around his wrist, and he lowered the ice pack from my face, placing it on the counter. “Forget about them. I’m okay.” I was a little sore in places, but overall, I wasn’t terrible for someone who’d been jumped by five savage cheerleaders. Thankfully, I didn’t bruise easily.
He nodded as his eyes darted to the fridge. “Hey…I know what will cheer us up.” Darren ran back to the freezer and revealed a carton of cookie dough ice cream.
“Boy after my own heart.”
“I know my best friend.” He grabbed two spoons and removed the lid. We dug in happily in silence, the coldness soothing my throat. After a few spoonfuls, Darren cleared his throat. “I know I’m incredibly late saying this, but…you look really pretty tonight. Shiner and all.” His green eyes anchored me in place, sending a tingle down my spine.