by Layla Wilde
“Hello?” It was thick and gravelly as if he had just woken up. “Victoria?” he asked when I didn’t say anything for a few seconds. I gulped, trying to get over the rush of excitement his voice had sent through my body.
“Yeah… I’m here,” I said breathlessly, my heart racing. “Did I wake you?” I asked, picturing him in his bed wearing nothing but his boxers, or maybe nothing at all. I bit my lip and squeezed my legs together, determined to keep myself in check.
“Yeah. I must’ve fallen asleep. You took a lot out of me last night.” I heard his soft chuckle, and once again, my body reacted like it’d never had before. I couldn’t believe a boy who had been my friend for so long suddenly had this effect on me. I bit my lip harder. “Anyway, why’d you call? Just wanted to hear my voice?” he teased.
“No, your dad paid me a visit a few minutes ago.”
“Oh.” Hunter was much more alert.
I allowed myself to fall back on the bed, looking up at the glow-in-the-dark stars I had glued to my ceiling when I was thirteen. “Yeah. He came over to tell me that if he ever caught us together again, he’d file a restraining order against me. He can’t do that, can he?” My fingers played with my sheets to distract from the painful thought of being permanently separated from Hunter.
“Of course not. I would have to go to court and testify against you, and I’d never do that,” he assured me. “Do you really think I could live next door to you without hopping over the fence and climbing into your room? Especially now that I know what you sound like when I turn you on?”
“I wasn’t that loud,” I protested.
“Oh, I don’t know about that.” He chuckled. “But yeah, my dad can’t do that. I think he was just trying to scare you away.” Hunter sighed through the line. “He had a firm talk with me, too. Said he would take away my bike and a lot of other things if I kept hanging out with you.”
I gasped. “And you’re still going to risk it all just for me?”
“Of course. Regardless, my dad would need to take the bike from my cold, dead hands, but other than that, yes. I would give up anything to be with you, babe,” he answered, his voice as sweet as honey.
I smiled from ear to ear, my heart rampaging in my chest. I could hardly believe it. After countless years of having a crush on him, he finally returned the sentiment, making me the happiest girl in the world.
“Guess we have nothing to worry about then,” I said, still smiling. I might have had a crappy dinner with my mother and a scary face-to-face encounter with Hunter’s dad, but at the end of the day, Hunter was faithful to me and that’s all that mattered.
Hunter
The rest of the summer passed quickly. Most of my nights were occupied with seeing Victoria, and the days were spent playing football with the guys. Time just seemed to fly by. Before I knew it, there was a large moving truck parked in front of my house, waiting to be loaded with all the stuff I needed to take with me to the new living quarters in Ohio. I sighed, looking at my room. I hadn’t even thought of packing yet.
Before I could get off my bed and start working, there was a soft knock on my door. “Hunter?” I smiled as I heard the familiar voice. When I opened it, a middle-aged woman with gray hair and a colorless smile appeared before me.
“Natalia. How are you?” I asked, leaning against the door and flashing her a smile. Her cheeks turned rosy before she remembered where she was.
“Your father sent me to help you pack for school. We’re sad to see you go, but we wish you the best of luck.” She leaned in close after checking that my father was not nearby. “And we hope you get on the football team this year!” she whispered excitedly.
I smiled down at her. Natalia had worked for my father for as long as I could remember, functioning as a sort of a second mother to me, especially after mine passed away. “Thank you.” I looked at her warmly. “But I don’t want to burden you with something I should’ve already done. I’ll take care of it myself. Don’t worry,” I told her, resting my hand on her shoulder. I knew my father overworked his staff, and I didn’t want to contribute to their fatigue.
“Are you sure?” she asked, looking uncertain. “It wouldn’t be a bother.”
“Yes, I’m sure. The moving truck is out front, right? I’ll just carry my belongings myself. I don’t spend all that time at the gym for nothing.” I chuckled. At my comment, her eyes wandered over me for a fleeting moment before she met my eyes again, a look of embarrassment painted on her face.
“That’s very responsible of you,” she said. She stepped forward, moving even closer to me. “And what about little Victoria next door… How is she doing?” she asked in a hushed whisper, so low I could barely hear her. Natalia was the only person who knew about my secret relationship with Victoria. “I always knew the two of you were meant to be together,” she said with a twinkle in her eye. “When I saw you two play together as kids, I just knew you would grow up to love each other.” Her voice had taken on a dreamy tone.
I blushed slightly, hearing her say the word love. I knew it was true, but at the same time, it felt strange to hear it said aloud, like I wasn’t quite ready for it yet. In my mind, the secrecy revolving around my relationship with Victoria made it seem like it didn’t exist outside her bedroom.
“We’re doing quite well,” I answered her. “Speaking of which, I’m supposed to meet her at the park this afternoon. Thanks for reminding me.” Natalia nodded, stepping out of the way as I hurried down the stairs. I looked at my phone. It was ten to three. I was supposed to meet her twenty minutes ago. A pang of guilt wrapped around my body as I rushed out of the house and onto my bike.
I sped to the park, hoping Victoria wouldn’t be too cross with me for keeping her waiting. As I rode, I could feel my phone vibrating in my pocket. No doubt it was her, but I couldn’t answer because I was speeding down the residential roads toward the local park. I parked, looked around, and found her by the playground. She sat on a bench, watching a squirrel climbing up a tree, its mouth full of nuts, trying to find a place to store them for the winter.
I stopped, admiring her for a second. Her unique, fiery hair blew in the wind, showing off her delicate shoulders and slender neck. Her earrings sparkled slightly in the sunlight, looking like stars hanging from her ears. My breath caught in my throat. I couldn’t believe how beautiful she really was. Even from behind, she was absolutely gorgeous.
She put her phone against her ear, and my ringtone echoed through the park. She turned around and looked at me, a confused look on her face. She smiled brightly and rushed over, wrapping her arms around me in a tight hug. “I was getting worried!” she said, burying her face in my chest.
I smiled, holding her tightly against me. Everything in the world felt right when she was in my arms. I leaned down and kissed the top of her head. “I’m sorry I kept you waiting. I completely lost track of time,” I apologized, taking her hand and guiding her back to the bench where I pulled her onto my lap, my arms comfortably around her waist.
“Oh, it’s okay,” Victoria said, quickly forgiving me with a chuckle. “I’ve come to accept your perpetual lateness.”
“So why did you want to meet here, anyway?” I asked her, my lips pressing gently against her neck but not quite kissing her.
“Well, I wanted to spend some time with you that wasn’t in the middle of the night in my bedroom,” she answered, her voice soft and timid. “Is that bad of me?” She nibbled her bottom lip. “If you don’t want to because of your dad or whatever… I understand.” She sounded crestfallen, and I frowned, holding her even tighter.
“You really think I’d let that old geezer keep me away from you?” I kissed her neck, sucking on her flesh softly until a gentle moan escaped her lips. Her cheeks turned bright red, and I pulled myself away before I could get us into trouble.
“Oh… okay then…” she said, a little dazed. We sat in silence for a few minutes before she spoke again. “One more thing. School starts in a week.”
�
�Don’t remind me,” I groaned, thinking about going to classes and sitting through boring lectures.
“Well, I don’t really have a way to get to Ohio. I have just enough money to buy my books, but that’s about it.” She frowned, wringing her hands together in worry. “I really didn’t want to ask you, but when I talked to my mom about it, she just dismissed it, like it wasn’t her problem. So… I’m kind of in a pinch.”
“Why didn’t you say something earlier?” I questioned.
“Well, I didn’t want to burden you or anything.”
“Come on, Vic, you know I’d do anything to help you.” I leaned forward and kissed her nose. “How could I not, when you look at me with that cute little face of yours?” She blushed but didn’t speak. “My dad just rented a moving truck so I could move my stuff back to campus. I think there’s more than enough space for you to stash your stuff in there as well, and we can make the road trip together.”
“You want to drive back to campus?” she asked in bewilderment.
“Yeah. And we’ll have to do it tonight. We pack our stuff while everyone is sleeping and ride off. If we do it during the day, my father will notice and stop the whole operation before it can even begin.” I told her. “Can you get your stuff packed up by tonight?”
“I’m already packed,” she said proudly.
“Of course you are. I should’ve known that. You always were a neat freak. Well, in that case, I’ll stop by around midnight and we can move your stuff. How does that sound?” I asked her, thinking about all the packing I would have to do in a short amount of time.
“Perfect.” She giggled. “I can’t believe we’re actually going to school together. It’s going to be so much fun!”
I nodded, picturing what it would be like to see Victoria every day without the threat of my lunatic father finding out.
***
With the moon high in the sky, I crept out of my house. I had walked past my father’s bedroom, just to make sure he wasn’t awake. The silence made me confident he wouldn’t wake up anytime soon. He had always been a heavy sleeper.
Effortlessly, I scaled the fence separating my house from Victoria’s and grabbed some small stones, aiming them skillfully at her window with just enough force so they would bounce off with a loud dink but not so hard the glass would crack. Seconds later, she popped out her head, her bright smile greeting me, making my heart speed up in my chest. Every time I saw her, she managed to become even more beautiful.
“I’ll unlock the front door,” she hissed at me, but before she could finish her sentence, I was scaling the trellis and jumping into her room. “Why do you always have to do that?”
“It’s a lot more fun. Trust me.”
“Well, either way, we need to use the front door to get my stuff out,” she pointed out.
I shrugged and saw the small pile of boxes. “This it?” I asked, a little surprised. The moving truck was nearly jam-packed with all the stuff I wanted to take.
“Yeah, I don’t have much.” She seemed a little embarrassed.
I nodded without another word. I grabbed the first box and slowly tip-toed through the house and out the front door. Within thirty minutes, we had everything loaded, including my motorcycle. I closed the door, fitting a heavy padlock through it so it wouldn’t open during our journey.
“Are you ready to go?” I asked Victoria, who looked a little pale. “Everything alright?”
“Yeah. I’m fine,” she said quickly, but I could tell by the way her eyes darted about nervously that she was lying.
“Are you anxious because we aren’t supposed to be doing this?” I asked. She nodded slowly. “It’ll be fine, don’t worry,” I said, kissing her forehead as I led her to the passenger side and helped her get in. Seconds later, I was in the driver’s seat, starting the engine. It rumbled loudly, the whole truck shaking. I glanced at my house and saw the light in my father’s bedroom come on. As quickly as I could, I put the truck in drive and sped down the street as Victoria scrambled to put her seatbelt on, a worried expression on her face.
Just before we turned the corner and out of sight, my father rushed out of the house, wearing his monogrammed robe and slippers, a disapproving grimace on his face. Luckily, Victoria was too short to be seen from his angle. I didn’t want to think what would happen if he saw her in the truck with me. But it didn’t matter. All that did matter was I was on my way to Ohio Stateside College with my girlfriend.
Victoria
We had been driving for hours. I was disoriented and had no idea where we were. There was a little bit of drool on my shirt from dozing off a few times. I looked at Hunter, who had a dazed look in his eyes. He slumped toward the steering wheel, his chin nearly resting on the worn-out leather.
“Hunter.” I shook his arm.
His eyes widened, and we swerved into the breakdown lane, the moving truck shaking violently in the process. “I’m awake! I’m awake!” he exclaimed, rubbing his eyes as he pulled back onto the road. “I swear.”
“You nearly killed us!” I yelled as the adrenaline rush cleared my mind, my heart thumping in my chest.
“No, I didn’t,” he said stubbornly, trying to look awake even though there were bags under his eyes.
“Yes, you did,” I pressed. “C’mon, there’s a rest stop up ahead. Let’s pull over and catch up on some sleep before we get into an accident.”
“No, I’m fine. I don’t need to sleep. I’m awake,” he repeated, his voice dull and lifeless. He grabbed his cold cup of coffee and gulped it down, holding back a grimace. “I can make it to school.”
“No, you can’t. Now pull over,” I said firmly. “I want to make it to campus uninjured, thank you.”
“Alright, alright. No need to give me such sass.” He looked at me, taking his eyes off the road for a moment, the truck slowly drifting toward the breakdown lane again.
“Hunter!” I screamed, jerking the wheel back to its proper position. “Pull over. Now.”
He glanced at me momentarily before sighing, “Fine.” He relented, looking unhappy about it. “If you had just let me buy the can of Monster at the convenience store, we wouldn’t be stopping right now, wasting time,” he grumbled, his fingers tightening around the wheel.
“I’m not going to let you rot your teeth and poison your body. That stuff will give you a heart attack,” I said, matter-of-factly.
“Will it now? Whoever heard of someone dying because of too much Monster?”
“There’s a warning on the label. Do not consume more than three a day,” I reminded him.
“Well, I wasn’t going to drink three.” He continued to be stubborn as he eased into the rest stop, putting the truck into park under a large oak tree. “There, are you happy now?” he asked, folding his arms over his chest, clearly irritated.
“Don’t look at me like that. I’m doing this for your own good.” I leaned in and kissed his cheek, but the pout remained on his face. “Oh, come on. Don’t be like that.” I continued to prod him, trying to make him smile, but he was a hard nut to crack.
“So what do we do now?” he asked, his arms crossed over his chest.
“Well…” I moved over slowly, easing gently onto his lap, thankful for the roomy interior of the truck. “If you weren’t so mad at me right now… we could…” My eyes sparkled with naughty intention as I looked into his eyes.
His eyes softened as he looked down at me with mild interest, but his frown stayed on his face. “We could what?” he breathed. I could tell by the way he looked at me that he was dying to give up this whole act, but he was persistent, curious to find out how far I would go.
“Well… there’s no one around. It’s just us… and it’s a little hot in here.” Slowly, I unbuttoned the top of my blouse, looking into his crystal-blue eyes, my lips smirking sensually. My nimble fingers moved downward, undoing another button, my sizable chest popping into view.
He leaned forward, peering down my cleavage, the tiniest grin appearing on his face. “
Go on,” he urged, eager to see more.
“Are you still mad at me?” I questioned, tilting my head to the side so my hair brushed against my chest, tickling the soft flesh.
“I might forget about the whole thing if you continue,” he said, his voice a sexy whisper.
I grinned at him and undid one more button. My purple bra was on full display. It was one of my smaller bras, but it was so comfortable I couldn’t part ways with it, even after my breasts grew an additional size when I started taking birth control in high school. He eyed it hungrily because my tits nearly spilled out of the small cups, the very edge of my areoles just visible against the dark fabric.
He grabbed my hips and lowered his head, burying it in my breasts. His lips were all over my flesh, causing goosebumps to pop up all over my body. I ran my fingers through his thick hair, pulling him even closer. Eagerly, his hands ran up the back of my shirt to locate my bra clasp. To my surprise, with the flick of his wrist, he managed to unhook it, letting the strapless piece of lingerie fall into my lap, freeing my breasts. He grabbed them in his large hands, kneading them and moaning softly. “You have the nicest rack I’ve ever seen, babe… Let’s make them bounce.” He grinned wildly at his comment.