All of that hippie, surfer chick crap was all bullshit for sure. I didn’t care how I looked or what anyone thought of me or called me. I just went with the motions of it all. And the only reason Elijah called me Surfer Girl was because we met while I was surfing.
It was really that sim-
I froze in place when I saw a dark shadow in my bedroom.
“Hello?” I asked, thinking it was a ghost.
I turned the bedroom light on and Elijah stood in the middle of the floor.
I let out a sigh and locked the bedroom door.
“What the fuck?” I asked.
“Did I scare you?”
“Yeah. You always scare me.”
“Secret talent of mine,” he said.
“Whatever, Elijah. Hey, I told you I would text you. And… how did you get here so fast?”
Elijah laughed. “Did you really think I was just going to leave?”
I swallowed hard. “You were following me. Even before I texted you.”
“Yup,” he said.
“Why?”
“Wanted to make sure you got home safe. And that you weren’t going to be alone. Or do anything else… crazy.”
“Oh, right. Aira told you some stuff.”
“Some stuff,” he said. “Right.”
“Just let it go, okay? Don’t make me regret asking you to come here.”
“So why am I here, babe?”
“I have no idea,” I said.
Elijah hooked his thumbs into the pockets of his jeans. His clothes were as soaked as mine. Stuck to his body. The curves of his shoulders and his toned chest were pushing against the clingy shirt.
I looked down and exhaled a breath.
“You have to be uncomfortable,” I said.
“Doesn’t matter what I am, Nova,” he said. “I’m here for you. Whatever you need.”
“Do you have extra clothes?”
Elijah pointed to a bag on the floor under the window.
I laughed. “You came prepared.”
“I’ve lived out of a bag for most of my life,” Elijah said.
I started to inch back, wanting to sit on my bed for a minute and gather up all my thoughts.
As my knees bent, Elijah hurried toward me.
At the last second, he grabbed my hand and put his right hand to my back.
“Let’s not sit down, babe,” he whispered.
“Why not?”
“You’re wet.”
“You’re a perv.”
“Not wet like that,” he said with a grin.
Heat raced to my cheeks. “Oh.”
“You’re drunk, Nova. I’m going to make sure you get into bed the right way and stay there.”
“How’s that work?” I asked.
Elijah pulled at my hand and pressed at my back.
I stood tall but nowhere near the height of him.
I could count the inches from my lips to his. But simple math and measurement was nothing compared to the hidden stuff. The stuff they never teach you in class. About feelings. And time. And love. And old girlfriends. And new babies.
“You’re going to go take a shower, babe,” he said. “And then I’m going to tuck you into bed. And read you a bedtime story. How’s that sound?”
“Don’t come near the fucking bathroom, Elijah,” I warned.
“I won’t,” he said. “I promise.”
I put my hands to Elijah’s chest and hesitated a few seconds before pushing him away.
He stood in place as I walked to the bathroom.
I shut the door and then stared at the lock for longer than I should have been staring at it. I shut my eyes and locked the door.
It was no secret that I loved Elijah. Or that my drunk mind wanted him. Or that my desperate body needed him.
What would be the harm in…
I shook my head and turned on the shower water.
The heat and steam made me shiver because it felt good.
I wrestled and stumbled across the bathroom floor to get my clothes off. Every time I lost my balance the turned-on drunk bitch voice in my head told me if Elijah was there, he would make sure I’d keep my balance. And that he’d strip my clothes off for me.
There was a trail of wet clothes across the bathroom, but whatever.
I was fine.
I did it.
I reached for the towel holder and my hand grabbed the metal bar.
I gasped.
No towel.
I looked to the floor.
There was no way in hell I could put my clothes back on.
“Shit,” I sighed.
I moved to the door and unlocked it.
I slowly opened it and hid my body.
“Elijah,” I said.
“I’m right here, babe,” he said.
“There’s no towel in here,” I said. “In the hall-”
“I know where the towels are,” he said with a grin. “This used to be my room too.”
“Right. Sorry.”
I watched Elijah leave the bedroom.
I shut the bathroom door and shut my eyes.
This was weird as fuck. But it shouldn’t have been. Nothing had changed between us. We didn’t break up. He didn’t… I didn’t…
Yet, if it wasn’t for Rory showing up, Elijah would have been against me.
In the shower.
My back against the cool, damp tiles.
The hot water pounding against my body.
Almost as hard as the way Elijah pounded…
There was a knock at the bathroom door.
I jumped back and screamed.
“Nova?” Elijah’s voice asked.
“I’m fine,” I said.
I opened the door and stuck my arm out.
Elijah touched my hand as he gave me the towel.
My toes curled to the floor as a warm sensation moved so fast from my hand to my… body…
I shut the door.
But I didn’t lock it.
I bit my bottom lip.
I was going to let temptation do its thing.
* * *
With the towel wrapped around my body, I exited the bathroom.
Elijah was gone.
I opened my mouth to call his name but I saw his bag on the floor.
I took a deep breath and caught the subtle hint of cigarette smoke.
A second later, Elijah crawled through the window.
His eyes went wide when he saw me. “Hey.”
“Hey,” I said.
“How do you feel?”
“Less sandy,” I said.
“Good. I, uh, I’ll go back out so you can get dressed.” He showed his hands. “I promise… no peeking.”
“Elijah, no,” I said.
“No?”
I stepped toward him.
He stepped toward me.
My heart began to race.
Nothing made sense. Yet at the same time when I looked at him, everything made sense.
We stood just inches apart.
I smelled like soap and cleanliness.
He smelled like cigarette smoke and the ocean.
“I love the way you look after a shower, babe,” he whispered. “That your hair looks darker. And the way it curls so perfectly. And your hair doesn’t hide your face as much. So your eyes just… pop even more…”
“Please, shut up,” I said.
“Okay.”
“You should have a shower next.”
“You sure?” he asked.
“Yeah. I’ll get dressed while you shower. You can’t be comfortable right now.”
“You can’t imagine how uncomfortable I am,” he said. “I’ve got clothes pressing against areas that aren’t meant to be pressed on.”
“Then go shower before I change my mind. If I sober up here, you’re a dead man.”
“Always racing against time,” he said. “That’s our story, Nova. Racing against time.”
“Well, time doesn’t last forever, Elijah,” I said. “So
I guess that means neither do we.”
Elijah nodded. “I’m going to need a towel, babe.”
He lifted his right hand and I quickly punched it away. “Don’t touch my towel.”
He started to laugh. “I’ll just go get a fresh one for myself. Since you don’t want to share.”
I squinted my eyes at him. “Oh yeah? You know what… fuck you.”
I turned and walked to my dresser.
I chewed on my lip one more time and then pulled at the towel.
As it fell from my body, I shivered, which was stupid. There was no reason to be shy or scared around Elijah.
Only if he comes near me. And touches me. Because I won’t be able to stop myself. And then things will get worse. So much fucking worse…
I gripped the towel with my left hand. I reached back and let it fall to the floor.
“There’s your towel,” I said.
I put my left arm across my chest.
Again, it was so weird to feel this way around Elijah.
He took the towel and I turned my head to watch as he grabbed his bag and walked to the bathroom.
He went inside and I didn’t move until I heard the shower water running.
I skipped the idea of wearing a bra because it was my fucking room and I wasn’t going to sleep in a bra. That was for psychos. I wanted to wear Elijah’s hoodie again but it was wet, sandy, and it was still in the bathroom on the floor. Probably mixed together with his clothes. As though we were in there together. And we took each other’s clothes off.
It all started to piss me off as much as it turned me on.
I found a different hoodie, one that was still oversized, but definitely all mine, and I put that on along with a pair of comfy, black pants. It was like being wrapped in a blanket.
I looked to my bed but skipped it, instead walking to the bathroom door.
I grabbed the doorknob and turned it. It was no surprise the door was unlocked. He probably did that on purpose. Because he wanted me to stand there and see if it was unlocked. Or because he was still a pervert douche Summer Boy with the fantasy of me walking in on him naked, while I was still naked, then do stuff to him.
I pulled my hand away, really pissed off, and I waved my middle finger at the door.
The door suddenly opened and I stepped back, gasping.
“Nova,” Elijah said as he stood there with messy wet hair and fresh clothes on his body.
Black jeans and a white t-shirt.
Like death to my vagina… how could I resist this?
“What were you doing?” he asked with a sly grin.
“Nothing,” I said.
“You were trying to peek. You broke your own rule.”
“No,” I said. “Not even close.”
“I mean, if you want to see, it’s okay…”
Elijah opened the front of his jeans.
My hand shot forward and down, grabbing his wrist.
I realized just how close my hand was to… his…
I moved back even more, my face burning red hot.
“You should probably go now,” I said. “This entire thing is weird. And wrong. Aira shouldn’t have called you. I shouldn’t have texted you to come here.”
“But you did text me, babe. And Aira did call me. Because you both know I’m the only one who can take care of you.”
“Wrong,” I said. “You think you can take care of me. But you can’t. You have a family now. Remember?”
I saw the pain wash across his face.
And I was okay with it.
I liked it.
“Nova…”
“I’m going to bed, Elijah. Goodnight. You know where the window is.”
“Yeah, I guess I do,” he said.
I hurried away from him and shut the bedroom light off.
Everything I had to drink during the day was wearing off. It was still crazy early for bedtime but I was genuinely tired. And I blamed Elijah for that too. It was because he was near me. He still made me feel safe and comfortable.
I got into my bed and stayed at the edge to keep as much distance from Elijah as I could. It was kind of stupid to do considering he was leaving.
There was silence.
Way too much silence.
I had no choice but to roll to my back.
I looked and saw the silhouette of his figure at the other edge of my bed.
“Elijah…”
“I told you I was going to tell you a bedtime story, babe,” he said.
I sighed.
You need to fucking leave. Right now. You need to disappear and be gone. And stay the fuck gone. Every second I’m with you is a second I feel like my heart is being ripped apart. Worse than it already is. You piece of sh-
“Make it a good story,” I whispered.
I rolled away from Elijah and pulled the covers tight against me.
I felt the bed move as he sat down.
I gasped and must have done it really loud and obvious because Elijah said, “Don’t worry, babe, I’m sitting on the edge of the bed. My hands are on my knees.”
There was silence again.
I wasn’t going to reply to him.
“A good bedtime story needs a happy ending,” he said. “So I guess I need to make some of this up. But I think it’s pretty close to be being true. I never believed in princes and princesses. Or castles and dragons. Or kings and queens. Or even moats with hungry alligators living in the water under the moat. But I always liked the stars. The idea that they were always there. Even during the day. But at night, they showed themselves. These silent and cool friends. And they made up pictures. And those pictures had stories.
“My bedtime story though, babe, is about the girl watching the stars. The one with the surfboard. She had a symbol on the board. It was a strange symbol that nobody knew what it meant. Except her. And she never told anyone. That surfboard allowed her to travel. To the sky and to the stars. Across the world. Through the universe. She was the only person who could get to the horizon where the ocean touched the sky. And in that special spot, there was a guy. He was alone. His job was to walk the horizon. Pacing left to right. Always and forever. Banished there as punishment for losing… well, losing the surfboard that the girl had. See, he got too far ahead of himself in life. He lived on the water. Not under it. But on it. And he dreamed of finding land. And he dreamed of finding someone to love. To marry. To take care of. He was told to stay away. That the land was dangerous. But one night he went to the land. There he saw the most beautiful girl he had ever seen in his entire life. So beautiful that her golden hair shined in the dark. And her sea blue eyes were just as bright. Captivated by her beauty he dropped his surfboard to the water and went to talk to her.
“A wave then showed up. The biggest wave ever. It took the guy away, leaving him yelling for the beautiful girl. Not only did he lose the girl, he lost his surfboard. The one with the symbol on it. So he was punished to walk the horizon. Stay on that line and never leave. Never experience anything else in life. Which was okay with him. Because all he could think about was the girl. The beautiful girl.
“So one day when the beautiful girl with the surfboard showed up… well… it was the surprise of his life. She was on the surfboard, able to reach the horizon, stay on top of the water, and even fly into the air. Doing things with the surfboard that the guy never knew was possible. The interesting part here though… when the girl looked at the guy, she fell off the surfboard. In midair, she fell. Her fingertips grabbed the side of the surfboard but she couldn’t hold herself up. She had to let go and fell. She screamed for help, saying she couldn’t die before getting married and feeling love. The guy jumped from the horizon and caught the beautiful girl in his arms. The surfboard fell from the sky next and the guy caught that too. As the beautiful girl and the guy stared at each other, they fell madly in love. An instant love. Before they could kiss, a wave grew behind them. The guy told the beautiful girl he wasn’t supposed to leave the horizon. And what had happened. Th
e beautiful girl told him to take the surfboard so he could end his punishment and be free. But to do that, the beautiful girl would be left in the water. She would drown. She would… die. The guy refused to take the surfboard. Even with the wave building behind them. It was the kind of wave that would end both their lives. They would be drowned and never have each other. Ever. The guy put the surfboard on the water and placed the beautiful girl down. He fell to his knees, on top of the water, and he kissed her.
“The wave crashed down with force. The guy was ready to die kissing the beautiful girl’s lips. It was worth everything to him. But as the wave touched him, it broke apart. His back had become a shield. The symbol on the surfboard began to glow too, creating a bubble around them. Letting them kiss. Letting them fall in love. When the kiss broke, the guy realized what the symbol on the surfboard meant. True love. He had found it. He scooped the beautiful girl up in his arms and stood on the surfboard. They kissed again and the surfboard lifted up into the air. High above the ocean. High above the waves that continued to crash down. They were both free. And together they rode the surfboard into the sky, into the stars, and across the universe. In an endless kiss…”
Elijah fell silent.
I waited for more.
I felt his hand touch my shoulder.
“Because in this story, babe, time never runs out. And forever is real.”
Elijah leaned down and gently kissed my head.
I quickly shut my eyes.
I listened to him crawl out the window to leave for good.
I wiped away a tear.
There were a lot more waiting to take its place.
Chapter 6
Elijah
I choked on my own words, my own breath, my own emotion.
With my bag on my back, I walked along the side of Cherry’s house, reaching for my cigarettes.
I had nowhere else to go for the early night.
Of course, that wasn’t true.
I had a daughter at home.
Waiting for me.
I sparked my lighter and studied the flame.
As I brought it toward the tip of my cigarette, I moved my eyes.
Cherry stood no more than ten feet away from me.
Arms crossed, staring daggers at me.
I killed the flame on the lighter and I slowly put my hands up like a busted criminal.
“You got me,” I said, the cigarette bouncing between my lips.
HIDDEN CREEK CRY: a hidden creek high noval Page 6