by Lux Carmine
I stopped at the kitchen island and whipped around to face her. I slapped my notebook and pen down loudly to let her know I did not approve. “Fine.” I was almost to the front door when a hand tugged me backwards, halting me.
“What now?”
She scrutinized my clothes and wrinkled her nose. “You’re not going over there like that, are you?”
I looked down at my t-shirt and sweatpants and then back to her. “What’s wrong with this?”
“You look like a homeless person. His mom probably wouldn’t even let you in the front door. Come on.”
Another thirty minutes later and I was walking to Steven’s house. I crossed my arms over my chest, the hair on my arms was standing at attention from the cool evening breeze as it licked over my skin.
A tank top, she said, show off that you’re a girl, she said. I was flippin’ cold! And the eye makeup she’d put on me was making my eyelids itch. It was dark; it wasn’t like he would see my eye makeup anyhow.
I stood in front of his house and gazed at the windows. All of them were on save for one on the second floor. I noticed Billy’s truck parked in the driveway. It made me feel less bad to know that he still had a friend over. I went to the doorbell and pressed it. Stepping back, I waited until the door opened and then I smiled. A man was standing there, he was very handsome for a fatherlike figure. I shouldn’t have been surprised. He shared genes with Steven. “Hi. Sorry to bother you so late, is Steven home?”
“What did he do?” the man said, his gaze narrowed on me.
“Oh, um, nothing. I just wanted to ask him a question. A homework question.” I pointed down the street. “I live down there a couple of houses and I’m stuck and my Aunt is traveling for work so I wondered if maybe Steven was available to help.”
Steven’s dad rubbed his lower lip with his teeth before opening the door and letting me in. “He’s probably upstairs with his music on. Go on up there. Tell him to leave the door open.”
I nodded, thanked him and then headed upstairs, briefly glancing at the beige sectional that sat in the middle of the living space. It looked like the perfect place for a large family to gather. Too bad, I thought, that it was just Steven and his parents. I was struck as I walked up the stairs by the lack of family photos. There were pictures of Steven’s dad and mom, but nothing of them as a whole family. I wondered if there was a reason for that.
I knocked on the first door I came to that was closed and waited. I knocked once more and then tried the knob. It turned in my hand and when I entered I saw a half naked Jason, laying across a black bedspread. He looked like some sort of Greek God, his tanned six-pack abs sparkling from his recent shower.
“Oh! I’m sorry!” I grabbed the door and quickly shut it in my own face. My hand was still on the knob and I stared at it, trying to take in what had just happened. Jason. Towel. Bed. Oh... maybe they really were gay. So much for the fantasy of one of them falling in love with me coming to life. I tried hard to push down the feeling of disappointment. I spoke into the crack of the door. “Sorry, Jason, I’m looking for Steven.”
The door flew open and Jason was standing there, scowling at me. “Steven?” My eyes fluttered to his chest. A droplet was descending over his pec and down his stomach. When it absorbed into the towel, I came back to my senses.
My eyes flew back to his, and I nodded. “Yeah. I didn’t know you two were, um...” I pointed at him and then behind him. Jason’s scowl grew deeper.
“What are you implying?”
“That you and him are um... together?”
His cheeks reddened. Either I embarrassed him or he was angry.
“I am not anything with Steven.” His tone said angry.
“Right, but, you’re in a towel in his room...”
“This isn’t his room! It’s my room.”
I blinked up at him and nodded, slowly. “Right. Well, I’ll be on my way then. Which room is his?” I pointed to the next door down the hall.
“I’ll tell him you’re here,” he said, gruffly. He passed me and I fought the instinct to inhale the fresh clean Jason scent that drifted with him. He opened the last door on the left and disappeared, the door slamming behind him.
I waited awkwardly in the hallway, hands shoved into my jean pockets and stared at the white wall in front of me. There wasn’t much to see in the hallway, it was sadly lacking of decor, even pictures. Jason and Steven living together? Were they brothers? They did both have that dark hair. Maybe they were.
There was some arguing behind the closed door. I moved closer to get a listen. My ear was almost to the wood when the door flew open and Jason stormed out, nearly knocking into me.
I watched him stalk down the hall and slam his door. Huh. Weird. And then I went into Steven’s room, slowly. I knew Billy was here somewhere too. Maybe he was in the room with Steven and they were kissing? What was with me and things these guys were all over each other? Oh yeah, because if they were gay I was safe. As I stepped in I saw Steven sitting on the corner of his bed."Hey."
Steven’s face went from annoyed to cheery in less than fifteen seconds. “Hey. Is everything all right?”
“Not really?” I said, slowly, still unsure if I should do this thing at all.
He pat the corner of his navy blue bedspread and I took a seat, making sure I kept lots of space between us. Steven was dressed, still wearing what he wore earlier, a blue plaid button down and a pair of black jeans. “Tell me what’s going on. How can I help?” he said, folding his hands as his elbows came to rest on his thighs.
I considered him for a minute and then I just started talking. There was something about both Jason and Steven that made me feel so comfortable and open. It felt like no matter what I said or did they wouldn’t judge me for it. I explained to him about the party, all the ingredients that we needed to have a successful one and then I broached the subject of the missing one.
“Melissa says our party will be lame if we don’t have alcohol there. I’m kind of against the whole thing-“
“Me too,” he interjected.
“-but since Melissa is so down about what happened with Joey I just want to do whatever will make her happy.”
“Within reason,” he said, lowering his chin, making his gaze more serious.
“Of course.” I smiled and nudged him with my shoulder. The sparks flew and tingled down my arm. I struggled to hold my composure. I stared at him to see if he felt anything. He seemed so composed. I was the only one feeling the sparks, obviously.
“And you’re here because you wanted to ask me if I could get the alcohol for Melissa’s party.”
I nodded. He made a low sound of consideration in his chest and rubbed his hands together slowly between his spread legs. “Hmm...”
I felt the no coming, and I wanted to make sure I prefaced it. I wanted him to know that if he disappointed me I wouldn’t be hurt, and I’d find another way. “If you can’t do it, that’s cool. I can ask Jason.”
“I’ll do it!” he blurted. A little too quickly.
I narrowed my gaze and took him in. He was smiling, and on the surface it looked innocent but I had a feeling it was anything but. What had happened between the two of them before I got here? Was there some sibling rivalry?
“What did Jason say to you when he came in here?”
“Oh, nothing.”
“It didn’t sound like nothing. It sounded like you two were having a fight.”
“Not a fight so much. Just a misunderstanding.”
“Are you two brothers?”
He shifted. His body leaned back and his hands went behind him for support. “Um... You could say that.” He paused for a moment and when our eyes locked, I felt a shift in the air. His breath held for a moment. “We’re foster kids. We’re the boys their parents didn’t want.”
“Oh, wow.” I studied his face, a little stunned. The guy downstairs must have been a saint to take in two teenaged boys. “How long have you guys lived with your foster dad?”
/> Steven readjusted again, clearly agitated by talking about it. But he did talk about it. With me. I ignored the zing of pleasure that went through my body at the thought. His hands moved to his knees, sliding up and down the length of his upper leg as he mentally considered the answer. “It’s been probably three years. We were taken in the month before our freshman year.” He smiled at me. “It was a crazy year.”
“How so?”
He swallowed visibly, taking a deep breath. “Earlier that year I’d been placed with this couple. They seemed nice enough, their house was big and clean. They didn’t have any other kids. They played the part really well the first day, the first month. And then one night Hector, that was his name, came home drunk. I heard him come in and start arguing with Mary, that was her name. They got really loud, and I heard things breaking. I went downstairs to intervene, to see if everyone was okay. He had her against the wall, he slapped her. I rushed forward and pushed him off. That was the start of the worst night of my life.”
I listened intently as Steven retold the story of the night he was taken away and sent to Juvie for defending his foster mom from the wrath of his foster dad.
“I didn’t hit him first, but no one listened. I was just some scummy foster kid. He beat the crap out of me. My lawyer never showed any pictures of my injuries. The only ones that were shown were of my face the night they booked me. And they found people who I used to live with who lied their asses off on the stand. Probably Hector and Mary paid them to lie. They had lots of money. I think I was just some charity case to make them feel better about themselves. Either way, I went to Juvie for the rest of eighth grade and most of that summer. I was let go early for good behavior. And then Beth and Gary took me in. And that was the beginning of a pretty good life.”
I didn’t put any forethought into it, I just placed my hand on top of his. “I’m so sorry that happened to you,” I said as tingles invaded my fingertips.
His eyes dropped to my lips and my cheeks heated in response. He stared for a long moment before bringing his gaze back to mine. “It could have been worse,” he said with a lazy smile.
I could lose myself in his gaze.
“True,” I said, pulling my hand away. He stopped me, took my hand and entwined it with his. I looked at our hands. They looked good together. There was a sound in the hallway that drew my attention away. I caught a glimpse of a half naked body going past the door. Jason.
Steven’s finger went to my chin and gently brought my face back towards him. “Don’t worry about him.”
“I’m not.”
“Don’t lie to me either, Ruby. Don’t ever lie. Okay? That’s a deal breaker.”
The way he said it, the unspoken things that went along with those words had my arms prickling and my stomach twisting in a good way. Was he saying what I think he was saying?
“For friendship?”
The lazy smile was back for a minute. He nodded. “And other things, if you’re interested.”
My cheeks flushed. I had no idea what that could possibly mean. I mean I had some idea, but I was probably just being a lovesick fool. He couldn’t possibly have meant that. I was about to open my mouth to ask him when his finger brushed over my lips, scrambling my mind quicker than a professional grade blender.
He chuckled as he took in what was probably the look of a deer in headlights. “I didn’t mean to scare you off.”
“I, uh...” Don’t lie, Ruby! “You’re sure you can get the booze for the party?”
He nodded, grinning, his roaming hand returning to the bed. “Sure. No problem. What time do you want me to bring it over?”
“Um...how about six-ish?”
“How about five-ish? Dinner is a do-not-miss here.”
“Okay. Sure. That works.”
He nodded and put both hands on the comforter behind him, leaning back slightly. I wanted to straddle his hips and rub my palms all over his massive chest. He was just too handsome, too manly to be eighteen.
I stood up quickly before I did something we would both regret. “Thanks, Steven.”
He stayed where he was. “Anytime, Ruby. Can I walk you out?”
“Uh, no, that’s okay. I know the way.” I paused in his doorway and came back, glancing around his room. “I kind of told your foster dad I was here for homework help so, um, I need some fake homework.”
He rose from the bed, tsking me on his way to his desk. “Ruby, you have to stop with the lies. Gary is cool if you want to come talk. To any of us.” He grabbed up an old assignment that was lying on his desk and held it out to me.
I took it and then paused. “Wait... any of you? Jason isn’t the only one?”
He chuckled, his eyes sparkling with amusement. “We’re all foster brothers. Jason, Kevin, Mike, Billy. And me.”
5
“Did we forget anything?” Melissa had been going crazy cleaning up the house. It was probably a wasted effort, they would trash the place before the night was over. It was Friday, the night of the party. We’d handed out the flyers and spread the word around the school. When Melissa reported about who she thought was coming she did so with enthusiasm so I hoped that this would be the thing that would cheer her up.
“Nope.” I threw away the checklist I’d made, we had everything. “Now you need to go upstairs and get ready.”
“Okay, but you’re coming too. You’re not wearing that.“
I glanced down at my vintage style Mickey Mouse t-shirt and jeans. “I’m not, of course not.” I inwardly groaned as I followed Melissa upstairs to her room. The sheets and blankets that used to be on my bed were now hers. She insisted washing the sheets in hot water hadn’t been enough to erase the bad memories of what went down on them. They were just sheets and blankets so I’d agreed.
I sat down on her bed and waited as Melissa pulled things from her closet. Eventually she settled on a black sleeveless scoop maxi dress. Thankfully, I’d been able to talk her out of wearing the striped mini dress, by reminding her that if she had to bend over to clean up spilled beer, the whole high school would see her panties. She agreed it wasn’t the best night for it and put it back into her closet.
“Your turn!” she said, and we went to my room. I knew before she opened the closet doors that she’d be disappointed with the choices. The only dress I owned was the one I wore to the funerals of Mom and Grandma. A moment of silence passed between us as she stared at it and then she turned around, shutting my closet doors and the memories of that day. “This is not good, Ruby. You need something more... Flashy.”
“But I don’t really like flashy.”
“Yeah, but we need to get boyfriends. And you aren’t going to catch one walking around in t-shirts. Although...” She clasped her hands to her chest, a grin on her lips. “I’ve overheard rumors that you’ve been flirting with the Lone Wolves.”
I shook my head. “No. I haven’t been flirting with them. They’ve just been trying to recruit me to drama club.”
“How did that go, by the way?”
“Um, it was cancelled because the sprinklers had been set off in the theater. So it’ll take like a week to dry it all out.”
“That’s a shame. I bet the boys were super disappointed.”
We’d spent the afternoon at their house watching the movie, Grease. It was a blast listening to most of them rehearse their lines and sing. Except for Jason. He had gone up to his room instead. Ever since I’d come over to speak with Steven he had been distant, no more note passing in Biology. Whatever interest he’d shown in wanting to get to know me had completely faded away.
“Not really. They still practiced. Just at home. I still don’t understand why you didn’t tell me that they lived a few houses down. Together.”
Melissa shrugged. “I don’t really pay attention to my surroundings. Mom hates it.”
It was a reminder that it would be my job tonight to pay attention to the horde of teenagers Melissa had invited to her house. She’d probably be too enthralled with flirting a
nd drinking. Me, on the other hand, I had no intention of doing either. “You know, I don’t really want to find a boyfriend.”
“Why not?”
“It’s our senior year and when the school year ends, that’ll be it.” And whatever relationship I had would end in heartache, just like they always have in the past.
“That excuse is lame. You’re starting fresh here. Make a good impression. Have some fun! I know you dreamt of being like Sookie Stackhouse. You wanted some tall, dark immortal guy to be infatuated with you.”
She was kind of right. I’d read the books, and I loved how all the guys were infatuated with Sookie. Be it a werebear, a werejaguar or feuding vampires, they all wanted a piece of Sookie.
“Yeah, but unless you know of some vampires hanging out in your neighborhood, I don’t think that’s realistic.”
“Maybe he won’t be immortal, but if you want to be like Sookie, get the attention that Sookie gets from guys then you’re going to have to dress like her.”
“In a bikini or in a waitress outfit with bootie shorts?” I was hoping the sarcasm would deflect Melissa’s need to make me over, but it didn’t work.
“I was thinking more like the dresses. Hold on, I have the perfect one!” She ran out of my room and came back holding a tiny strapped V-cut white dressed splashed with pink and black blooms.
I shook my head slowly as I looked at it. It was too revealing. Too preppy. Too ... Girly! “No. No way.”
“Come on, Ruby, unleash your inner Sookie.”
I shook my head again as she pulled me to my feet. “I’ll look ridiculous and everyone will laugh.”
“Maybe, but let’s just see how it looks.” She shoved the dress against my chest and turned around, crossing her arms. She tapped her foot for extra emphasis.
I sighed heavily. When the dress was on I went over to the mirror. I saw Melissa behind me squeeing, clapping her hands rapidly and grinning like a girl staring at the perfect diamond engagement ring being presented by a prince. And then I looked at my boobs which would fall out of the top. “No way,” I said, trying to shove my boobs back into the dress.