by L Johnson
“I actually got some good news from my new friend here. Asher this is my boyfriend Lucas.”
“Pleasure,” he shook my hand. “I gave her some good theories and info to use for her novel.”
“Awesome,” I nodded. “I was here trying to remember what exactly I wrote the other month.”
“Hi Persephone,” Cypress cut her eyes at her and then back at me.
“With an unwanted guest.”
“Aw, how sweet of you,” Persephone nodded her head. “You are the new guy aren't you?”
“I am.” Asher laughed. “Who are you?”
“She is Persephone; I think you two would get along quite well.” I tried to hide my smile. “Babe you wanna sit with? I was just telling Persephone about the meteor shower tonight.”
“Oh yes! I can't wait. Where did you say we were going again?”
“Surprise location,” I answered. She sat down with me in the array of my mess. “Welcome to my nucleus.”
Cypress laughed at my nerdy remark and nestled herself in. “I am happy for the invitation.”
Asher shifted uncomfortably. “Well, thank you for the chance to talk Cypress.”
“You are welcome. We should link back up in a few weeks and you can tell me if you get her or not.”
“I will definitely let you know.”
“Good, how about you join him Persephone. I am sure you have tons of good knowledge to pass on to him about being a female.” Cypress nudged my arm as my snide remark. “And Ashton it was a pleasure to meet you.”
“It's Asher,” Cypress nodded her head. “I'll give you a call or you can call me. Goodbye Persephone.”
Persephone stood up. “You are boring anyhow.”
“Thanks,” Cypress opened her notebook and watched as she walked off. “What was she doing here?”
“What were you doing with Romeo?”
“I am the only person that gets to dabble in your nucleus Lucas Elledge.”
“Scout's honor she was not in my nucleus.” I smiled at her and pulled her closer to me.
“She better not be.” She sat in my lap and wrapped her arms around my neck. “Where are we going tonight?”
“We’re going to a ridge about thirty to forty minutes out. And we should get some wine and some other weird things to take up there.”
“Weird like a Dark Side of the Moon CD?”
“Oh, Pink Floyd can only make this moment better. There is actually some Radiohead that could great with it. We should just make sure there is music. And make sure you have your wishes ready.”
“I think my wish has already come true.”
“Oh really?” I cocked my head at her. “Does it have anything to do with Captain Nerd there?” Something flickered lightly. If he didn’t get the message soon enough I would have to fix it myself. Asher would not like me to fix it.
“Everything to do with you.” Her lips touched mine slowly and then I placed my hands on the back of her head to pull her closer to me and crushed my lips into her.
“I'm happy to hear that.”
She moved the long strands of my hair from my face. “I love your hair.”
“I like it alright. I love your freckles…”
“Courtesy of my mom,” she smirked. “Bet you've never seen a black chick with some.”
“I have not.”
“Well, another first,” Cypress eyes never left mine. “You aren't going to hurt me are you?”
“I wouldn't dream of it.”
“Good, because I doubt that I could take another heartbreak. I just want something normal and good. And I'm scared at how fast everything is going.”
“I don't want you to fear anything. You're not supposed to fear me.”
“I don't fear you, I fear what will happen after you if everything goes to hell.”
“There is no after me Cypress.”
“You don't know that.”
“I do. I plan to do every and anything to make this work. So it doesn't matter the amount of time spent with someone. I could spend 15 years with Persephone and they would never add up to the months I spent with you. It's how you spend the time… I don't want to waste it anymore. I want to invest it in my future with you. So everything I do, every move I make is all going to add up to us being together.”
“You keep taking my breath away.” She whispered.
“Good I want our relationship to breathtaking and heart wrenching. So when we look back there are nothing but good memories and ones that count.”
“Okay, stop before I have to steal some of your lines in my book.”
“Steal away Cypress.”
Cypress
I stared at my closet. Every time he wanted to take me out I ended up spending more time in this damned closet than actually getting dressed and being productive. He would be here in less than thirty minutes and my face looked drained because the steaming hot shower took away any energy I had left.
It was cool tonight. The wind had already made the day chillier than normal, so I grabbed an orange sweater and a pair of brown jeggings to make the outfit simple. My hair was a complete mess and there was no taming this beast tonight. I fixed the bun the best that I could and tossed some cold water on my face to make me feel more awake. It was a quarter till midnight and I knew that the possibility of me to doze off was high.
The ring of my cell phone echoed throughout the whole entire apartment. I ran to the living room and glanced at it. Asher? I swiped it over. “Hello?”
“Hey, I was just calling you to let you know that you left your journal with me. Did you want me to meet you somewhere tomorrow?”
“Yes, that sounds like a plan. Just bring it to the courtyard where we met Lucas at today around four. I have to work on some things after class.”
“Perfect,” he answered. “Um, how was your date?”
“Haven't left yet. It doesn't start until about 2 am. The showers are supposed to be beautiful though.”
“Well, I wish you all the luck. And see you tomorrow.”
“See you too!” I ended the call. “Great that journal had some pretty girly moments in it and I knew he read it.”
The light tap at the door snapped me back into the reality that I had no shoes and an uncharged cell phone, “One moment.” I slid into some boots and then opened the front door. “You are here early sir!”
“I know. I couldn't sit in the car too much longer. I would have fallen asleep.”
“Are you good driving?”
“I am. I was just bored and decided to come here early. I like your outfit.” He hugged me lightly and kissed my cheek.
“Thanks, I was just about to straighten my room for a minute.”
“Take your time.” Lucas sat down on the counter.
“What is your new book about?”
“Everything,” He answered simply.
“Everything, good.”
Lucas smiled at me. “I started a new book a few weeks ago. It’s easy to say that you inspired me. It's not going to be a sequel. It's a standalone called “A Break in the Clouds.” I haven't even told my publishers yet. It’s part of the reason I can’t really tell you everything about it yet.”
“Wow.” I walked from the bedroom as I switched off every light in my path.
“I want you to be the first to read it since you said you loved my first book so much.”
“I would be honored.”
“Great! Are you ready to go?”
“How far out is this place?”
“About thirty minutes.”
“Okay, let's get to it.”
The ridge was a phenomenal place even if the drive was a little longer than he expected. He had everything set up in the back of his jeep including blankets. I sat down and stared up at the sky.
“Have you ever seen a shooting star?”
“I try to. But every time they passed through I am passed out.”
“Well, they will start in a few and then you can't sleep all the way back to the city.�
� Lucas opened the wine and poured me a glass then poured himself a glass.
“What is the first thing you think about when you wake up?”
“Just depends, most mornings here lately, you.”
“You're lying.”
“I wake up every morning and send you a message. Sometimes leave you a voice mail.”
Every morning like clockwork, he was right. “What do you think about me?”
“I think that I made a great decision pursuing you. You make it easier to get up, knowing that I get to see your face and touch your soft hands. I get to kiss your lips and stare at your sun kissed skin. I get to call you mine and it makes every day easier knowing only I have the privilege.”
“Really?”
“God, yes,” He answered.
“No one has ever said anything like that to me.”
“There is a first for everything.”
I look up at the sky, knowing that if I look at him there was a strong possibility tears might seep over. “Look!” I pointed at the streak of light that passed in the sky.
“They've started.” He pointed at the next streak and then they all came at once. Parading the sky with streaks of light over and over. Lucas clutched my hand with his and we watched until the stars faded out and the sky started to tint with the colors of dawn.
Chapter Five
Cypress
For once in about two weeks he asked for us to get out of my apartment. We had become so accustomed to the one on one time that we had forgotten the outside world. It was perfect except we needed to have some sort of social life and what better way was it for us to have one besides going to the Summit. I had grown to the love the place as if it was my own. I was used to the back door entrance to the apartment. But tonight we entered like pedestrians and all eyes were on us. I hated the attention at first. Don’t stare at us, keep dancing. But I soon realized that being on the arm of Lucas Elledge was admirable by pretty much the entire student body. He was established and everyone loved him. He wasn’t even a people person. But people were drawn to him like magnets.
The decision to leave my heels at home for the night had been a good one. The warm beige sweater hugged my body, Lucas had picked it out himself. He loved to buy me things and it was something that I was not accustomed to it. But every time I tried to stop him he gave me this look and my heart melted. His emerald eyes made it hard to say no to anything.
There was strum of guitars in the air and finally there was a song on in this place that I knew. There was no one better than a good song by The Civil Wars, especially Barton Hollow. I grabbed Lucas’ hand and pulled him onto the floor. We danced together like it was something we done every day. He swayed behind me seductively, making every girl in the room crave that she was me.
The Summit was not packed for the first time since I had known of it, so instead of having to yell over the crowd he simply whispered into my ear. “Who sings this?” Lucas pushed his hair away from his face and flashed his perfect smile.
It was my weakness, mainly because his smile rarely met his eyes when anyone else talked to him but with me they always touched them. They always lit up like he cared. “They are the Civil Wars; they play folk music.”
“I can tell.” He chuckled. He was into calmer music. I could tell by his iTunes that he was not familiar with them. He had every John Mayer CD known to mankind. I found it insanely cute that someone as rugged as him could dig Clarity and Your Body is a Wonderland.
The song ended and he scooped me up into his arms. “I have to talk to the manager about some accounting things right quickly. Would you be fine without me for a while and I should be back in about ten minutes?”
“Sure babe,” Lucas leaned forward and his lips met mine. I closed my eyes and it seemed as if the world stopped for a brief moment. My hands made their way into his long brown hair, his hands gripped my waist firmly as they pulled me closer to him. “Hurry,” I smiled.
“Back in a jiff,” He mumbled.
I walked over to an unclaimed booth and sat down. My feet were killing me. It was a bad idea to wear heels. I melted into the plush leather seat and too out my phone. I strolled through the phone looking for someone to text to keep me entertained. There was no one. I put the phone down and the waitress cleared her throat. Rude but oh well I was thirsty. “Hi,” I said.
“Hey, I am Patrice. What can I get you, sweetie?”
“I would like a Melon Bliss.”
“You are one of the owner’s girlfriend correct?”
“I am,” I loved to say. I loved to hear it. I loved to be it.
“Well it’s on the house.”
“Perfect!” I sat back and watched the crowd dance to some hip hop song like it was the last dance of the night.
“Cypress,” I heard a familiar voice say.
I looked up and there was Asher. He was drunk but he was so nice looking. He dressed well, his outfit was nice as usual. “How are you?”
“I am doing great actually. You called me once after that, was there anything that I could help you out with,” He sat next to me. I could smell the alcohol on his breath as he swayed into the seat next to me.
“Yeah, I got everything that I needed to do out of the way.”
“I wish we could have chatted more.”
“Well I have Lucas for that,” I smirked. “What’s wrong with you Asher?”
“I have to talk to you about Lucas.” He slurred his words and tossed his head back on the cushion booth seat.
“What about him?” I said.
He leaned closer and his lips formed a smile. “He is a lunatic.”
“I think you are drunk,” I tried to help him sit up in his seat but he was heavy. “Asher you really needed to go home, you don’t look so good.”
“You look great though.” His hand touched my thigh and dread coursed through my veins. He was heavy and he would not back the fuck away. His lips crashed into mine and I wanted to scream. Had he not been drunk and confused I might have enjoyed it. But the taste of crown and cigarettes swirled around my mouth as his tongue crashed into my mouth and I wasn’t a fan of either. I couldn’t push him off of me and his hands started to make its way up my skirt. I pushed and pushed until he finally flew off of me. I didn’t know I was that strong. Then I heard his voice.
“Get your bloody hands off of her!” Lucas slammed Asher onto the floor like it was nothing. The table flipped over and knocked everything to the floor.
Asher moaned. I refused to look at him. The sound of the thuds from Lucas hits were audible over the music. The guards made their way through the crowd. And they struggled as they tried to pull Lucas off of him. Once he was finally up Asher was passed out. The guards tossed him over their shoulders and moved through the crowd.
“I want him out and add him…” Lucas yelled over his shoulder. He was out of breath, “to the barred list. Get his entire name and make sure he is banned.”
“Lucas” I wiped my face. There was no way to get this taste out of my mouth. I felt like I had done something wrong in having Asher kicked out. He looked like he had a bad day. It had just gone from bad to worst in a few seconds.
“Are you okay?” I shook my head quickly. My mind raced as it tried to keep up with whatever had just happened. He grabbed my hand. “Let’s go.”
I had never seen him so enraged. Asher had pissed him off and I felt like he blamed me. “Calm down.” I said as I watched him pace around his living room. It was hard not to smile at his over usage of English slang. I barely could understand a word that flowed from his mouth.
“The bloody nerve of that wanker. Has he lost the plot? Is he off his rocker? Putting his bloody hands on you like you were fucking up for it!” Lucas pushed his fingers through his hair in frustration.
“Calm down, please?”
“You can’t expect me to. Fucking Asher was sloshed and fuck!” He growled.
“I lived, he done me no harm. I really just want to snuggle up and watch a movie with you. You�
�re angry for no reason.” I tried to soothe the wound. He had a reason to be mad. This was the exact same guy he had said that he didn’t want me to be around.
Lucas mumbled god knows what under his breath and continued to pace. He was erratic and it was cute but I tried not to smile. “What’re you thinking?” He asked.
“I’m thinking that I would much rather you calm down before you kill him,” I smirked.
There was glint of humor that touched his eyes and then it disappeared. “I don’t want anyone to have what is mine. Your arse is mine.”
His, I swooned inside. I could feel the heat as it traveled to my cheeks. There was no way I could hold a stern face to him now. “Babe there is nothing to worry about. I am 100 percent yours. He doesn’t mean anything to me. He was just a little drunk. Now, if we could please start this movie I would be so happy.”
“I’m not in the mood to watch the telly love,” He nodded his head. “I should bloody kill him.” He mumbled.
“Stop thinking murder. You are too young to go to jail for life.”
He stared at me. “Right,” he said as if he was not fazed. “Start the movie.”
Lucas
I wanted to bloody kill him, I could see nothing but red. My fucked up mine had already had a plan in play. I could lure him out of the club and chop his body in tiny pieces and burn him in a fucking fire just outside of town… better yet I could take him to the morgue and crisp him alive… My heart raced at the thought, Asher to Ashes.
Cypress cleared her throat. “Please calm yourself Lucas,” She smiled. She was amused and it was cute, but there was this small piece inside of me that was sincere about the threat of death to Asher. I had told this wanker once to stay the fuck away.
“I’m calm Cy,” I sat on the couch and watched her but she was the last person on my mind. The hunt was now there. I wanted him dead.
Cypress hummed some Lifehouse song I could not remember the name of and slipped the DVD into the player. She bopped around my apartment and got herself wine and some fruit from the fridge. She had gotten so comfortable here. It made it easier to fall for her.