Jayson (Fallen Brook High School YA series)

by J. L. Wyer

  “Ry is my best friend. I will do whatever it takes to make things right... well, anything but give you up. Trust me to make things right.”

  “Okay.”

  Our voices are nothing but a murmur. My gaze roams his battered face, and I press gentle fingers to his various bruises. His face may be a bit blue and purple, but Jayson is still one of the most handsome boys I have ever seen. I decide to take matters into my own hands and lean up to kiss him. He’s old enough to have a bit of stubble along his jaw, and I explore the texture and feel of it by caressing my face along his. I keep things light knowing the bruise on the left side of his face must hurt and the cut on the corner of his mouth must sting.

  I press kisses along his jaw, his neck, and back up to his cheek before pulling away. His sharp intake of breath clues me into the fact that he likes what I am doing. My nose presses into the side of his neck and I inhale his fragrant skin. He smells like cedar and spice.

  Since he kissed me, I’ve been worrying that I wouldn’t know what to do or how to make him feel as good as his kisses make me feel. This is all new for me, and I know it’s new for Jayson as well. I love the fact that we are each other's first kiss.

  “Liz?” Jayson says like a question, and I want him to kiss me again.

  Before anything more can happen, Freda knocks on the bedroom door and our bodies jump apart at lightning speed. By the time she pushes the door open to bring in the tray filled with food, Jayson and I are sitting at opposite ends of his bed, him at the head of the bed and me at the foot.

  “Hey you two. Here.” She hands Jayson two pian killers. “Take these and eat your soup. Liz, I know you said you weren’t hungry, but I brought extra just in case.”

  She places the tray down on the bed between where Jayson and I are sitting.

  “Your dad wants to talk to you after you finish eating, so unfortunately, Elizabeth, you’ll need to go home soon.”

  “I understand Mrs. Jameson. I promise I won’t stay much longer.”

  “You can come back tomorrow if you want to, but he’s still grounded for the next six days. I have a feeling you two will be texting and videoing anyways,” Freda comments as she pauses at the door. “Oh, and an open-door policy is in effect from now on when there’s a girl in your room,” she says to Jayson.

  “Mom! Oh my God.”

  We can hear Freda chuckling all the way down the hall.

  Chapter 8

  Ryder

  I’ve been keeping to myself the past few days mulling over Julien’s words, still angry at Jayson, missing Elizabeth like crazy. It breaks my heart when I see her name light up my phone before I hit decline. She’s been calling and texting constantly, begging me to talk to her. I’m hurting her with my silence but I’m not ready to face her yet, because I know I will have to face him as well. Julien has checked in on me a couple of times. He stopped by the house last night and we just hung out. Heck, even Elijah came over saying he wanted to get my opinion on how to tweak his dirt bike. I have a feeling Julien had a hand in that visit.

  My dad and I talked for a long time that night. He’s an old romantic at heart. Told me that if Elizabeth was the one, then I should be patient and give her time to explore her feelings, that we are young and things change as we grow older. Well, my sixteen-year-old self says screw that. I’d been waiting for seven years already.

  We’ll be leaving for the beach in a few days and knowing that I’m going to be stuck in the same house with all of them, seeing Elizabeth every day, seeing Jayson and her act like boyfriend and girlfriend, being forced to put on a happy face when all the while I want to ram my fist down his throat. It’s going to be utter hell.

  To help keep my mind off everything, I’ve been working with Dad in the garage from morning to night. He totally surprised me yesterday when he drove a Hellcat into the work bay, got out, and threw the keys at me.

  “That's a gorgeous car. Custom job order?” I inquire, thinking that it’s one of his clients who wants some upgrades done.

  “Nope, it’s yours.”

  My mouth drops open and closes like a fish.

  “No way.”

  His mouth tips up in a half grin. “Since you're now sixteen, your mother and I decided that you shouldn’t have to rely on always having to borrow one of our cars, and we wanted to get you something that you could work on and truly make your own. I’ve seen your drawings, Ry, your designs. I would like to help you create your dream car if you would let me.”

  My dad is the greatest. I go over to him and pull him in for a hug. “Thanks, Dad. I love you.”

  He thumps my back hard three times. “I love you too, Son.”

  It’s a gorgeous car, and I am itching to begin working on it. I know exactly what I want to do, down to the paint color and interior. I’m taking this bad boy out to the Fields as soon as I’m done with it. After so many days feeling like awful, it’s nice to have something to feel good about. Something to work toward.

  I’m looking over the car, clipboard in hand, making notes of the things I want to change, replace, or modify. I don’t know how long he’s been standing there, hands pushed deep in his back pockets, shoulders hunched, when I notice him.

  “What do you want?” I growl.

  He flinches as if I hit him. The urge to do exactly that is overwhelming. “Liz has been trying to get in touch with you. She’s worried. She doesn’t know I’m here.”

  “She’s not my problem anymore, remember?”

  “That’s a stupid thing to say. Of course she’s still your problem, because she’s still your friend. Her heart is breaking because she misses her best friend, and I promised her that I would fix it.”

  “Get out of here, Jay. I’ve heard enough of your lies.” I turn around and decide to ignore him. Apparently, he’s not taking the hint.

  “Look,” he grabs me to turn me around to face him, “I messed up. I’m sorry.”

  Flinging my clipboard down, I throw my arms up in the air in exasperation. “What more do you want from me! I came to you and Julien, I looked you dead in the eye and told you how I felt about her and what I was going to do about it, how I was going to tell her. And you just ran as fast as you could over to her house and laid claim. You didn’t care about how I would feel. You didn’t care about how much that would hurt me. You took our friendship and stomped all over it.” Fed up with him, I begin to storm off not wanting to hear anything else that comes out of his mouth.

  “She loves you, you know.”

  I stop.

  Exhale.

  I turn around.

  Jayson pulls out a metal stool and sits down on it like he has no more energy to stand, the heaviness of our situation taking its toll on him. He leans forward, arms propped on his knees like that night in my backyard.

  “She loves you, and it kills me knowing that. I couldn’t deal with it. Couldn’t deal with the fact that I could lose her. She has been my universe since the day I gazed into her gorgeous green eyes. God, I remember that day like it was yesterday.” He looks up at me then. “I know she loves me, but I. Am. Terrified. I’m terrified that maybe, just maybe, she loves you a little bit more.”

  “You should have told me that instead of bolting.”

  “I panicked, man. You are the better person here. You always have been. I’m sorry, Ry. I’m sorry for all of it. I wish I could go back and do things differently.”

  “Do you?”

  He skakes his head. “Elizabeth is the one getting hurt here. She needs you in her life. I need you in my life. You’re my best friend. Is there any way you could forgive me? I will do anything to make this right.”

  I want to shout back at him, Well then give her up, but I keep quiet. Knowing Elizabeth saw me the other day in a full rage, fists flying, makes me feel two inches high. Seeing her cry, throwing herself on me, begging me to stop, and now ignoring her texts and calls. Jay’s not the only one who should feel ashamed. I think about what Julien asked me. Do I love her enough to let her go, make
her own decisions, and find her happiness, even if it’s not with me?

  “I’m not saying that I forgive you. It’s going to take time for me to even want to be in the same room as you. You broke that trust. You’re gonna have to earn it back. But this is not Elizabeth’s fault. She shouldn’t have to suffer because of us.”

  I hold out my hand to his. No fist bump this time. This time we are shaking hands like men.

  Elizabeth

  Jayson said he had to run out for a bit and would be back later. We are officially going on our first date tonight. Seeing as he’s still grounded, I wonder exactly where he thinks we’ll be going. The fact that his mom even let him out of the house to run an errand this afternoon is a miracle of its own. Over the past several days, the swelling on his face has disappeared leaving the fading yellowish bruising on his cheek and eye. It doesn’t bother me because all I see is Jayson. What does bother me was seeing Ryder and Jason fighting, a scene that keeps playing out in my nightmares every time I fall asleep.

  Hailey and I are enjoying some quiet time out on the back patio. I can’t believe it’s almost the Fourth of July and we’ll be spending it at the beach. I hope that I’ll be able to get through to Ryder since he’ll be a captive audience, so to speak, for a week and won’t be able to hide from me or ignore me like he’s been doing the past few days.

  Hailey throws a water bottle at me before sitting back down in her lounge chair. I have my earbuds in, listening to music, while I read a book on my tablet. The summer heat is picking up so I’m wearing one of my new bathing suit tops, the blue halter one, and a pair of shorts, hoping to soak up some sun or at least get a nice rosy blush going on my pale skin. I twist the cap off the bottle of water and tip it back, the chill of the water a relief on my parched throat. Then I choke. Ryder is standing in front of me. Hailey rushes over to pat me on the back as I continue to sputter.

  “I’m fine.” I wave her off.

  “I’m going to head back inside now.” Very subtle Hales.

  I wait until she closes the sliding door. I feel awkward, then sad, then mad.

  “Where have you been? Unless your phone was abducted by aliens, you’ve been ignoring me for days.”

  “I know. I needed some space.”

  “Ryder, I’m so sorry. It’s all my fault. Please forgive me.”

  “No. I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have hit Jay. That was a despicable thing for me to do in front of you. I didn’t hurt you, did I?” Ryder looks terrified that I might say yes.

  “No, no,” I assure him. “I’m fine. I’m worried about you though. Please don’t hate me.”

  “I don’t. I won’t. He, um, actually came by today and apologized.”

  “He did?”

  “Yeah. He did. I can’t promise that Jay and I will ever be friends like we used to be.” I frown. “But I can promise that I’m not going anywhere. You still have me if you want me, I mean, as a friend.”

  “Absolutely! Yes! Best friend?”

  “Best friend.” Joy floods me.

  I’m so happy to hear those words from him that I leap off my lounger into his arms. He’s still for a moment, unsure of what to do, but within seconds his arms band tight around me and he hugs me back fiercely.

  “Thank you, Ryder.”

  “You’ll always have me, Elizabeth.”

  A throat clears behind us, distinctly male. Without turning around, I know it’s Jayson. What must he think seeing Ryder and I hugging? Before I can get words to tumble out of my mouth, Ryder releases me and holds out his hand to Jayson. They shake briefly like they are business partners at a meeting.

  “I was just leaving,” Ryder tells him. Ryder brings his hand to my cheek, gently cradling it, his thumb a whisper across my cheekbone.

  “I’ll see you around, Elizabeth.”

  All I can do is nod. I watch Ryder walk down the back patio steps and disappear around the corner of the house.

  “So,” Jayson says.

  “So,” I smile at him. “Thank you for keeping your promise.”

  “Always, princess.”

  “Where are we going on our date tonight?” I ask, changing the subject.

  “Not telling. It’s a surprise.” He reaches for me and pulls me to him. “Have I told you lately that you are gorgeous?” he says making me blush. “Wait. Isn’t that the new bikini top you bought the other day?”

  “How do you know?”

  “Oh, princess, I think I need to show you what happens to girlfriends who text pictures of themselves on their phone.”

  Giggling I ask, “What happens?” Jayson bends down and I'm suddenly hoisted up and over his shoulder. “What are you doing? Let me down right this second!” I exclaim, laughing and wiggling.

  Jayson smacks my butt before marching inside the house to kiss me breathless.

  It's nearing ten o’clock and I’m pacing my bedroom floor, full of jitters. Jayson told me to stay in my room and he would pick me up at ten for our date. The fact that he instructed me to stay and wait for him in my bedroom, and that our date is at ten at night, leads me to believe that his parents have no clue about our date, and he’ll be sneaking out of the house since he’s currently grounded.

  Regardless of the time and circumstances surrounding our first date, I’m still excited and anxious about it. So like any sixteen-year-old girl, it takes me about an hour to pick out the perfect outfit after trying on everything in my closet and Hailey’s, and then another hour to make sure my hair looks just right. Jayson loves it when I wear my hair down, so I add some corkscrew curls to my long blond locks. I’m even wearing makeup and perfume which is a rarity for me. I figure, you only experience one true first date in your lifetime, might as well go all out.

  My bedside clock turns ten and Jayson appears at my bedroom window. I should have known. Since I keep my window open most nights, it’s easy for Jayson to climb in, something he’s used to doing anyway. Something I’m not used to seeing, however, is him dressed in a dark gray collared polo shirt and khaki chino shorts. I’m also not used to seeing him holding out a bouquet of flowers at me.

  “Oh my gosh,” I gush, taking the bunch of wildflowers from his outstretched hand and smelling them.

  “I may have stolen them from mom’s garden. Hope you like them.” Wow. “Liz, you look beautiful.” Double wow. My heart soars that he notices the effort I put in to look good for him tonight, so I repay the compliment.

  “You, sir, look absolutely dashing as well.”

  We take a minute to absorb what feels like a monumental moment before he reaches his hand out to me. “Princess Elizabeth, I am here to escort you to your date.”

  I want to say something silly like, I thought my date was already here, but I don’t want to ruin the romance of what’s happening with jokes. I place my hand in his and he raises it to his lips. He turns my hand over and kisses the back of my wrist below my palm before twisting my hand over and doing the same to each knuckle. I don’t know if I’m going to survive our first date if he keeps this up. I’m already melting into a puddle of goo at his feet.

  Jayson wiggles his eyebrows. “Follow me,” he says and pulls me to the window.

  My first thought is, he’s going to make me climb down a tree.

  My second thought is, I’m glad I decided not to wear a dress.

  Jayson, Julien, and I have gotten very good at climbing up and down the old oak tree between our houses. We’ve been doing it since third grade. Jayson helps me out of my window and carefully guides me down to a lower branch, one that’s sturdy and thick. He steps out onto the branch and eases me down next to where the branch meets the trunk.

  “Here. Sit.”

  The branch is wide enough for me to comfortably sit without fear of falling. I perch in a straddle, my back against the trunk of the tree. We have to whisper in hushed voices in case both our parents are still awake, especially since Jayson’s still grounded and isn’t supposed to leave the house for another three days. Jayson sits facing me and reach
es into the side pocket of his shorts to take out a small remote. My eyebrows raise at him, and he smiles, then presses a button on the remote.

  Hundreds of tiny white fairy lights come to life around us and start to intermediately blink and twinkle. I gasp, my hand coming up over my mouth in surprise. When did he do this? I’m filled with wonder for this boy, for all the ways he shows me he loves me, that I am special and precious to him. He truly does treat me like a princess.

  “As a first date goes, how am I doing so far?”

  “Oh, Jayson,” I breathe.

  He’s not finished. He reaches into his other pocket and brings out a small item wrapped in tissue paper. "This is for you.”

  With shaking hands, I pull the tape off, being careful not to tear the tissue paper too much. I want to preserve it in a scrapbook, one I will make to commemorate all of Jayson's and my firsts. I carefully pull back the last corner. Sitting inside the paper is a necklace. Not just any necklace. There’s a charm hanging from a thin leather cord. It’s the rose quartz heart Jayson found in the creek and gave me when we were younger. I’ll have to ask him later how he stole it from my rock jar without me noticing, but at the moment I am too in awe of the gift to care.

  “I hope you like it. Jamie helped me make it.” He sounds nervous and unsure.

  There are no words I can say to him to express how I feel right now, and a simple thank you isn’t enough, so I lean forward for him to place the necklace around my neck before murmuring against his lips, “I love it.” Then I kiss him. I pour everything into the kiss, everything I want to tell him and show him. “I think as first dates go, you knocked it out of the park. And you are so definitely telling me later how you were able to do all of this without me noticing. But for now, I just want you to hold me.”

  He feathers his nose across my cheek. “I can do that.”

  Jayson stands up on the tree branch and has me skootch forward away from the trunk before settling down behind me. He pulls me back against him and envelops me within his strong arms. For the rest of our date, he holds me like that, my head laying back against his shoulder, and we talk amongst the starry fairy light universe Jayson made just for me.