The Bad Boy's Dance

by Vera Calloway

  “If you bleed, I bleed,” he whispered.

  And with his hands still trapping mine over the weapon, he plunged the blade into my heart.

  Chapter

  Thirty-Three

  Moon Cheese n’ Donuts Please

  Bursts of light dancing across my vision as I stared at the knife protruding from my chest.

  Pain, unbearable pain. Make it stop.

  A bang, the screeching of steel, and suddenly my private bubble of hell was filled with movement, colors.

  A voice screaming my name as I slumped to the ground….

  ….beeping. Beeping. Beep. Beep. Beep. “Will she be okay?” A choked voice. So familiar….darkness once more.

  Beep…Beep…

  Beep.

  It felt like someone had super glued my eyelids shut. They wouldn’t open.

  Okay, count of three, yank those suckers up!

  One! Two! Three!

  My eyes cracked open.

  Blinking a few times, it took several minutes to adjust to the unique fluorescent lighting. When my vision cleared, I realized I was in a hospital room, complete with an IV in my right arm, one of those flimsy gowns, and a muted television on the wall.

  When I saw a head of midnight hair resting on the bed, sleeping, I freaked.

  Then, when I realized it was Asher, I freaked again.

  The vast relief that swept through me like a tidal wave was overwhelming. I hadn’t allowed myself to entertain the possibility that he hadn’t made it out of the clearing in the woods alive, but the notion had festered in my conscious like a blister. The rollercoaster emotions running through my veins said something I’d known all along, but hadn’t acknowledged until I’d almost lost him.

  He was sleeping at an uncomfortable angle. His body was in the chair, but he’d scooted it to the edge of my head, and his torso and head were lying next to my leg. His face was turned towards me, and I traced his cheekbone with the tip of my index finger carefully. There were shadows under his eyes and stubble on his jaw, but even haggard and exhausted, he was beautiful enough to knock the breath right out of me all over again.

  I smoothed a lock of his hair away from his forehead, smiling when he nuzzled into my hand.

  Then, I promptly whacked him hard on the head.

  Asher shot out of his chair, arms careening as he stumbled in a dazed stupor. He groped for his calf-he really bought his gun into the freaking hospital?- but relaxed after a second, yawning and scrubbing at his eyes. I watched him blink a few times, frowning at the chair as if it had committed some great offense. He was reaching to scratch his neck when his eyes met mine.

  Shock sparked the vivid cobalt eyes to life. Asher’s jaw dropped, and I couldn’t help the giggle I released. He looked so comically astonished.

  “You’re awake,” he breathed.

  “Yep.”

  “You’re not dead.”

  “Nope.”

  “You hit me on the head.”

  “Three for three.”

  Asher looked like he was seconds away from disturbing the IV in the crook of my elbow and tucking me under his arm. Hell, I wouldn’t be surprised if he punted me like a football, such was his excitement.

  “Aren’t you going to ask why I hit you on the head?” I asked primly, knotting my fingers together on my chest after raising my bed a bit.

  Asher still looked like he was dazed. “’Cause you’re a freak?”

  I scowled. “No-well, yes, but that’s beside’s the point- it’s because my boyfriend is an idiot.”

  Asher arched an eyebrow, but I saw his eyes light up when I called him my boyfriend. “What’d that bastard do now?”

  Do not let him make you laugh! Fight the funny!

  “Well, you see, we were in this situation. Quite the dire situation, really. He was being very kick-ass, fighting the bad goonies and everything, when all of a sudden, he gets distracted. He knows better than to let himself be distracted, but he still runs after his girlfriend, who is being kidnapped. Therefore, the last thing the girlfriend is treated to before it was bye-bye-birdy was the sight of a gun leveling and shooting at her idiot boyfriend.”

  Asher was speechless. Someone call the press, please, this is a Kodak moment.

  He returned to his seat on the chair, scooting even closer to the bed. He scrutinized me for an instant before doing the last thing I expected.

  The butthead burst into laughter.

  Honestly, he laughed so long and hard I worried the nurse would try to hook him up to an IV too, just in case he coughed up a lung or a liver. I frowned, tapping my fingers on my arm, waiting for him to finish.

  Asher wiped at his eyes, still lightly chortling. His expression slowly transitioned into one of seriousness and sorrow. “You’ve just woken up, your last memory of getting stabbed in the heart, and the first thing you ask about is if I’m all right? You really are an angel, aren’t you?”

  Nuh-uh. He hadn’t seen me during my chocolate phase. I’d raided every member of my family’s secret food stash and pigged out like royalty. I still felt guilty every time I saw a Hershey’s bar. But that was neither here nor there.

  “What happened? How’d I get here? Where…where’s Jared?” I whispered, my voice hitting a high note as the memories of how I’d ended up in the hospital flooded to the forefront again.

  Asher took my hand into his, weaving his fingers with mine. “He was arrested.”

  “How did you guys find me?” I murmured. It felt like with every thump of my heart, an invisible blade embedded in it. Jared stabbed me. He’d stabbed me. Shivers erupted over my skin, and Asher pushed the blankets over my shoulders.

  Asher’s face darkened as the recounted the details. “We were all in your living room when you called Paul. The police managed to get a location from the signal of your phone, and we booked it like bats out of hell. The cops were going to go get a professional to open the gate the son of bitch had installed in front of his door, but I just shot the lock to bits. Paul and Spencer came in a second behind me, but by then it was too late.”

  Here, Asher’s voice cracked, and he absently tightened his hold on my hand. “God, it was the single most terrifying moment of my life. Your back was to me, but I could see his face. He had this twisted look of satisfaction, and I didn’t understand why until you fell to the side and I saw the blade. The police restrained him before he could use it on himself, and they took him away. I…angel, I thought you were dead.”

  My heart broke for him. I could only imagine him bursting in on the horrific scene. Asher closed his eyes briefly when I ran my fingers down his cheek. When he opened them again, the cobalt was a fierce blue, electrocuting me to the core.

  “I was going to kill that fucker. I really was. Spencer had to punch me twice before I realized you needed my help more than revenge. We took you to the emergency room, and the doctors gave us the best news. Jared had pushed the blade in hard, without aim. So the knife nicked your ribcage and wedged in between the bones, which took an almost-surgery to remove. But it missed your heart.”

  “Thank goodness. It would be really corny walking around with a scar on my heart. Get it? Scar, like surgical? No?” I cracked. Everything he’d said was information overload, and I needed to keep it locked up and shut to deal with at a later time if I was every going to get released from this hospital without a trip down the psychiatric ward.

  Asher rolled his eyes, but he seemed to understand my reluctance.

  Huffing, I crossed my arms over my chest. “Tough crowd.”

  Stretching, Asher raised his arms above his head, straining the muscles under his black T-shirt and making the inky swirls of his tattoo move.

  Damn, I want me a slice of that sugar. His biceps are so yummy. He should stretch more. Maybe next time he can try to touch his toes and flex that lovely tush.

  Asher looked at me funny. “What?”

  Please, please tell me I farted or something and he didn’t hear me say that.

  A wicked s
mile spread over his lips, and my cheeks ignited faster than a match on kerosene. Asher leaned over me, his hands balancing him on either side of my head on the pillow. He brushed his lips across my cheekbone, my eyelid, my nose.

  His lips dropped to my ear. “You really have a thing for my ass, don’t you? Don’t think I didn’t notice you copping a feel when you were drunk, or when we were in the woods. And that was even before you admitted your wild attraction to me.”

  Asher gently bit my earlobe as he delivered the last line. “And baby, I’ll stretch for you any day.”

  He pulled back, grinning at my slack-jawed expression. He flipped his phone open, read something, and groaned lightly.

  Words. They come out of our mouth…how do they connect? What language do I speak again? Bonjour?

  While my brain unscrambled itself from Asher’s assault on my estrogen levels, he dropped his phone into his pocket and straightened his shoulders. “We have about five seconds of peace left. Remember, don’t move too-”

  The door burst open.

  “Make that two seconds,” Asher muttered, stepping away from my bed.

  Paul, Spencer, Dana, Caleb, and Kyle funneled into my room. My eyes were half-shut, so they didn’t immediately realize I was awake. Paul took Asher’s seat while Spencer threw himself at the foot of my bed at picked up the remote. Dana and Caleb dragged chairs on the opposite side of the bed from Paul and started arguing about something. Kyle grabbed a magazine and flipped through it from his perch on the floor.

  It looked like they’d developed a routine when they came to visit me. A fissure of unease exploded in my chest. How long had I been out? It felt like only a few moments.

  “Hospital cable sucks,” Spencer complained, finally giving up on finding something decent and balancing the remote on his nose like a seal.

  “It’s not like the doctors and nurses are going to take a quick Gilmore Girls break. Or, in your case, Pretty Little Liars,” Paul quipped, flicking through a textbook absently.

  “I do not watch Pretty Little Liars!” Spencer huffed indignantly.

  “Dude, you have posters of Lucy Hale under your pillow,” Paul scoffed. “Get out and smell the delusion.”

  Dana and Caleb’s arguing soon overpowered my brothers’. “I can’t believe you never told us! We’re your best friends, Caleb, how could you betray us like that?”

  Caleb groaned, and I saw him thump his head against the bed a few time from my periphery. “I didn’t betray you guys, for the millionth freaking time. Get a grip, woman!”

  Kyle snorted from his place on the floor. “Man, you just wait until Ivy wakes up; she’s going to use your balls for earrings.”

  It was getting harder and harder to stay still, and I knew Asher was going to start guffawing any second, and the jig would be up.

  “Oh by the way, Mom has like five nurses posted to Ivy’s room, so don’t try any of that naughty nurse crap, got it?” Paul warned Spencer. “Or your mother will hear about it.”

  “Buzzkills. When are they coming back, anyway?”

  Paul sighed. “They airlines won’t fly to South Dakota because of the storm we had yesterday. Mom’s going insane, even though I told her Ivy’s condition was stable, and Dad almost pulled a Home Alone to make it here. Jodi’s still with Dana’s dad. Thanks for that, by the way,” Paul mentioned.

  It was bothering me more and more that I couldn’t see their faces. Any second now…

  “Home Alone one or two?” Caleb inquired.

  “One,” Paul yawned.

  “That was my favorite.”

  It took everyone a few seconds to realize Caleb hadn’t been the one to speak, and the room stopped. I opened my eyes fully and grinned, wishing I had a camera more than ever to record the thrilled and shocked faces before me.

  Dana was the first to react. She stood and grabbed my hand, squeezing it tightly. “You’re okay. You’re really okay,” she whispered. She smoothed my hair from my forehead and exhaled.

  She slapped me.

  Everyone flew to their feet, but Dana and I were locked in a private stare-down. I’m not sure who won, but a few seconds later, her harshness melted as she burst into tears.

  I wrapped my arms around her the best I could, letting her bury her face in my shoulder. “I-I-I was so scared, there was so much blood, and the knife...Why didn’t you tell me about J-Jared’s visits? Why didn’t you,” –hiccup-“tell me he was stalking,” –hiccup-“ you again? I’m your best friend, Ivy! Don’t you ever scare me like that again!”

  Well didn’t I feel like a Class A jerk. Releasing her as she stepped away, I smiled remorsefully. “I’m sorry, Dana. It all happened so fast, and I guess…I didn’t want to believe what was right in front of me.”

  Caleb and Kyle crowded out my brothers. Spencer had stepped out of the room to call Mom and Dad and let them know I was okay while Paul was simply staring at me silently. It was pretty creepy, actually.

  Asher was still in the corner of the room, giving us space, but he tensed when Kyle took one of my hands in his. I scoffed. “For the love of everything moon cheese, get over here Asher.”

  Rolling his eyes again, he stood next to Caleb on my bedside, on the opposite end of Kyle. I crossed my arms over my chest. “Asher, you need to understand that Kyle and I are just friends.”

  Kyle’s eyes widened. “Wait, what?”

  Asher sent him a scathing glance before looking at me. “But-“

  “No buts! I believed you about Brenda, and that was a much harder pill to swallow. If Kyle and I had feelings like that, we would have acted on them a long time ago.”

  Kyle looked completely lost while Asher was biting his lower lip-and damn if it didn’t get me all hot and bothered- in contemplation. At last, he sighed. He extended his arm over me, towards Kyle.

  Kyle grinned and took his hand, shaking it vigorously. But when he tried to retract it, Asher wouldn’t let go. “Right now you’re in the safe zone. Put the moves on my girlfriend and you’ll have to learn how to eat with toes.”

  Kyle paled visibly while the others laughed. Knowing this was the best I could get from him, I put my hands on their wrists and pulled their hands apart. A thought occurred to me. “Hey, wait. Why are the rest of you all buddy-buddy with Asher again?”

  It was true. There was an easy relaxation around the room, and nobody was sending poisoned glares at Asher, despite the fact that the last time I’d seen them, I’d gotten the impression they were willing to commit manslaughter.

  Caleb laughed. “He told us what happened, and we believed him.”

  At my skeptical expression, Dana piped in. “He came to your house after he got back from the woods, letting us know what had happened. At first, Caleb and Kyle had to restrain your brothers –Spencer tried to throw his weights at him- but when he told us, we were too freaked to really be bothered. He told us about what that crazy bitch did. Honestly, it was his reaction to your kidnapping that sold us. No one that loved you as much as we did could shack it up with Curtis.”

  The rest of the room continued to chat easily, but Asher and I had frozen. Dana had unwittingly hit a nerve for both of us.

  Nobody that loved you as much as we did.

  Paul thankfully spoke then, distracting us from the awkwardness. “Everyone, go home. Ivy needs to rest. She might not have actually had a knife in her heart, but she was still stabbed. So get out.”

  With a lot of grumbling, everyone took turns giving me hugs and filing out. Dana and Caleb were arguing at the foot of the bed until Caleb threw his arms in the air in exasperation. He turned to me with a determined and slightly crazed look. Ah, the influence of our Dana.

  “I’m dating Phoebe Jenkins, the girl from your Physics class. Jeez! Happy?” He asked Dana, stomping out.

  Phoebe? Oh! It was that cute sophomore with the big glasses and the Asher-terror. They were dating? What a crazy world we do occupy.

  Dana giggled, watching him leave in a huff. “He’s been flustered all week. It
probably doesn’t help that I keep telling him she’ll be jailbait soon. Oh, and Ivy?” she said wryly. She wagged her finger at me. “I know what you’re up to with Homecoming.”

  With a beaming smile, she winked. “Keep it up!” and flounced out. I chuckled at my weird friends.

  Asher hadn’t moved from his position, and Paul was giving him the stink-eye. Didn’t look like they would be exchanging friendship bracelets any time soon. “You too,” Paul insisted.

  Asher smirked. “No. We’ve had this conversation.”

  Paul made a noise of annoyance. “She’s fine! You can go home now. You’ve been camping at this hospital for three days!”

  Three days? I’d been in the hospital for THREE DAYS? The schoolwork, the chocolate store on Bradford…oh no! And Mrs. Knut must be losing her mind. I wouldn’t be surprised if she showed up and tried to stab me in the heart too.

  Asher and Paul continued their argument while I freaked. “I need to have a word with my sister. At least go and wait outside,” Paul groaned with frustration.

  “Fine. But I have no intention of leaving until Ivy’s leaving with me.” With that vow, Asher exited the room, closing the door behind him.

  Now it was just Paul and me. We looked at each other quietly while he sat in the chair by my bed.

  “He was the reason you panicked that day, wasn’t he?”

  He didn’t need to elaborate. The day Jared had come see me after school, I’d broken down in Paul’s arms, something which hadn’t happened in ages.

  “Yes,” I whispered. “I’m so sorry, Paul. I wish I’d told you, but he threatened to hurt anyone I told.”

  Paul sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose. “I wish you had, but I understand why you didn’t. The only thing keeping me from going on a rampage is the fact that the sick bastard is in padded cell as we speak. They’re not letting him out any time soon.”

  Paul grasped my hand in his. “Ives…we all died a thousand deaths when we saw you in his apartment. Asher nearly killed Jared, and the only reason I didn’t join him was because…I’d already failed you once. If I let you die, I’d be failing you again. I couldn’t let my little sister die on the floor in front of me.”