Against the Rules

by Lucero, Isabel

  “I got your favorite Mexican food,” he tells her. “And their famous lemonade.”

  “Thanks, baby,” Gia says, using her crutches to get to the couch.

  Greg helps lower her down to the recliner, and we all settle into our new normal. I’m a Floridian again.

  45

  As soon as I get off the phone with Nova, I head downstairs and find Merrick in the den. He’s sipping a drink and looking at his phone. His head snaps up when I walk in.

  “Everything all right?”

  I head straight to the liquor and pour myself a drink. “That was Nova. She’s not going to be coming back.”

  “Ever?”

  I shake my head. “I don’t know. She has to take care of her sister.”

  “Damn, man. I’m sorry.”

  Over the last couple days I’ve told Merrick everything about me and Nova. He gave me a little shit about the fact that she was a student, considering he was teasing me about that the last time he was here. But he’s happy that I’m happy.

  “So, what now?”

  I sit down across from him and take a sip. “We’re gonna see what happens. I’ll head down there for Christmas break.”

  “Long distance, huh?”

  “Don’t really have a choice.”

  “Yeah, I guess not. That sucks, though. You guys haven’t had that much time together.”

  “Yeah.”

  I’ve hated these past two weeks without her. My life went right back to how it was prior to meeting Nova. And now that I know what it could be like, it makes it that much worse.

  I’ve finished the series she suggested I read. I’ve tried two new-to-me restaurants. I listen to music a little more, but it’s not the same if she’s not here dancing and singing to it.

  Making breakfast makes me think of her and her misshapen pancakes. I think of her when I go to bed, when I get up, and when I’m in the class that she’s no longer a student in.

  “What about you?” I ask, wanting to get out of my own head. “Tell me what’s going on.”

  He sighs. “Ah, you know.”

  “Don’t give me some generic response either.”

  Merrick grunts. “You’re a shit, you know that?”

  “Yeah, well, you’ve been bullshitting around something for a while. So tell me what’s going on.”

  He throws his head back, swallowing the rest of his drink in one gulp, then puts the glass down on the table. His eyes meet mine like he’s trying to tell me without words. When I only continue to stare back, he lets out a sigh.

  “This is a lifestyle most everyone wants, right? Or at least dreams about. People want money, fame, the ability to travel. And we’ve just started. I know I’m lucky.”

  “Okay,” I say with a nod.

  “And me and the guys are still cool, there’s no drama. But…” he pauses, looking off to the side like he’s searching for his next words. “Have you ever felt like people don’t know you?” He shakes his head. “Maybe it’s not that.” After a deep sigh, he says, “I’m just tired.”

  “You can go upstairs and get some rest.”

  “No. Not tired like that. I feel like I’m constantly working to be something I’m not.”

  I put my drink down and focus all of my attention on him. “What are you talking about, Merrick?”

  He stands up, running his hands through his hair, and begins pacing behind the couch. “Fuck.” He stops, resting his hands on the back of the couch, looking back at me. “You remember when I was sixteen?”

  I nod. “Of course.”

  Merrick was constantly keeping me on my toes. When his brothers moved out and it was just me and him, he seemed to make it his job to have me worry about him. He was sneaking out regularly, and I caught him coming in drunk a few times. It was constant lies and deceit. He fought back against authority, and he smoked weed with his friends. He was rebelling. I just didn’t know why.

  “You remember my friend Ali?”

  “I do.”

  He eyes me a bit longer, like he’s waiting for me to say something more.

  “So, you remember that night?”

  I release a breath. We’re finally going to talk about it. “Yeah.”

  After a few seconds of a silent staring contest, he shakes his head. “Never mind, man. You have a lot to think about. I don’t need to throw all my shit out on your shoulders. Don’t worry about it. I’m fine. Everything’s fine. Maybe I will go get some sleep.”

  “Merrick.”

  “No, really. It’s okay,” he says with a grin.

  “I don’t mind listening.”

  “I know, but it’s fine. I’ll talk to you tomorrow, okay?”

  “Okay.”

  After he leaves, I sit there for a little while, wondering when he’ll reach the point where he feels like he can talk to me, or anyone, about what he’s dealing with.

  As I finish my drink, I think about this situation with Nova. I will never be mad at her for making this decision because it’s the same decision I made over and over again when my brothers were younger. They always came first. It was them before any relationship or any of my own personal desires.

  And now, even though they’re older, I’d still drop everything to rush to their side if they needed me. Nova taking care of her sister is noble and selfless, and it makes me adore her even more.

  We started off having obstacles, so what’s one more?

  46

  The letter comes on November thirtieth. The date we started dating. I found it stuck under the windshield wiper of my sister’s car when I went to check the mail. After handling it with a pair of gloves on, I read the note.

  I thought you loved me. I thought you’d come back home as soon as you thought I was heading your way. Did you find a new boyfriend already? Is that why you didn’t come back? This is your fault, Nova. I had to do what I knew would get you back here in a hurry. Your precious sister. Your only family. And now you’re here. Are you ready to apologize to me? I’ll see you soon.

  He didn’t leave a way to contact him, but that doesn’t mean he won’t pop up. I’m sure he’ll make good on his promise to see me soon, and for the first time, I’m ready to come face-to-face.

  * * *

  Every day since I got the letter, I’ve been leaving the house more often. I make sure someone is with Gia, then I’m off running errands, hoping he’ll be watching and come talk to me. It takes a week, but it finally happens.

  I’m at a nearby park, almost three blocks from my house, stretching and getting ready to go for a run. Movement catches my attention about fifteen feet ahead of me. There’s a narrow path surrounded by trees, and he’s waiting for me amongst them, probably wanting to walk out and scare me as I start my jog.

  Luck is on my side, because he doesn’t know that I saw him. It gives me time to prepare. I send a text from my phone while putting in my earbuds, so he thinks I’m just turning my music on.

  After the text is sent to both my sister and Officer Robles, I slip my phone into my armband and finish my stretches before starting my run.

  I’m just beginning to pick up my pace when he steps out of the trees and stops in front of me. I snatch out one of my earbuds as my heart leaps into my throat. It’s not that I didn’t know he was there, but it’s being so close to him knowing all the things he’s said and done. He looks nearly the same. His brown hair is disheveled, his eyes are red-rimmed, like he hasn’t slept well in weeks, but he’s still handsome. He’s tall and lanky, not really the most threatening person when you look at him, but something in his gaze sends chills down my spine.

  “Mario,” I breathe. “What are you doing here?” I look around, searching for people who may be nearby.

  “Nova.” He purrs my name, and a tiny grin upturns his lips. “It’s so good to see you.”

  “I wish I could say the same, but you hit my sister with your car. Why would you do that, Mario? Why?”

  He steps forward, but I step back, angling my body to the side, rea
dy to run in the opposite direction if I need to.

  “You ran from me,” he says. “You left like I didn’t mean anything to you. All I did was love you, Nova. I just wanted us to be together.”

  “I wanted that, too,” I tell him, keeping him calm. “But you were tracking me, Mario. You broke into my house. You scared me.”

  He approaches me again, this time grabbing onto my wrist. “I didn’t mean to scare you. I just wanted to be with you. I was afraid you were going to leave me, and then you did. You left me, Nova!” His voice becomes bitter at the end and his grip tightens on my wrist.

  I attempt to wrench away. “Mario, you’re doing it again. Let go of me.”

  His grip loosens. “Nova, I’d do anything for you. You know that, right? I wanted to go to Ohio to find you. I really did. That was my plan, but I couldn’t. I couldn’t get a plane ticket. I didn’t have a car that would make that trip. I just thought maybe you’d come home. I thought you’d be afraid I’d show up there, so you’d come here. But you don’t need to be afraid of me, Nova. I’m not going to hurt you.”

  He’s rambling, his speech becoming fast and frantic as he keeps getting closer and closer to me.

  “You hurt my sister, though. You know how much she means to me.”

  “I didn’t mean for her to get seriously hurt. I knew you wouldn’t come back for me, but you’d come back for her. You always choose her.”

  I step back but he comes with me. “Mario.”

  “You believed her over me when I told you I wasn’t following you. You took her word over mine.”

  I don’t argue with him. I don’t tell him that I knew he was following me because I saw him with my own eyes.

  “What do you want?”

  He smiles. “You. That’s all I’ve ever wanted.”

  The smile on his face disappears when he looks over my shoulder. I follow his gaze and see two cops coming around the corner with their guns drawn.

  “Get on the ground now!

  Mario’s eyes snap to mine and his face morphs from hurt to anger. He opens his mouth to say something, but the cops are getting closer and they keep yelling at him, and now he’s trying to weigh his options.

  Fear climbs up my body, because I don’t know what’s going to happen. Will he run? Does he have a weapon? Will he try to hurt me? Will the cops shoot him?

  “Mario, please,” I say softly. “Do what they say.”

  He squeezes my wrists even harder, and I wait for the bones to shatter under his grip. His eyes bore into mine with a fiery rage, and then suddenly, he lets go and steps back.

  His eyes never leave mine as the cops approach, twist his arms behind his back, and read him his rights.

  As they take him away, I break down in tears, sucking in shaky breaths.

  A couple minutes later, Officer Robles, the one who’s been attached to this since the beginning, is back and placing his hand on my shoulder.

  “You okay?”

  I nod. “I’m just so glad this is over.”

  “You did good.”

  I remove my phone from the armband and look at the screen. It’s still recording. “He admitted to hitting my sister.”

  Officer Robles nods. “Let’s get you home.”

  47

  December 21st

  I’m bouncing from foot to foot in the parking lot of the hotel, waiting for Elijah to show up. I’m desperate to lay eyes on him again.

  Not that we haven’t been FaceTiming for the past month, but that doesn’t really count. I haven’t been able to touch his face, kiss his lips, wrap myself around his body. God, I’ve missed him.

  We’ve talked everyday—sometimes for ten minutes, sometimes for hours. And now he’s in Florida for the next ten days and I couldn’t be more thrilled.

  He decided to keep my car for me when I left, and now he’s driving it down here so I can have my own car again. I’ve been driving Gia’s because it’s not like she can drive it with her right leg being broken and all, but eventually, we’ll need the extra car.

  Elijah’s staying in a hotel for two reasons. The first is because we definitely want privacy, and the house me and Gia are staying in is just a simple townhouse with two bedrooms, and Greg practically lives there, too. The second is because I haven’t told her about my relationship with him.

  I’m thinking I’ll be having that conversation within the next ten days, though.

  My white Accord pulls into the parking lot and I start jumping up and down. Elijah sees me and parks in a nearby spot with a huge smile on his face.

  Before he’s fully out, I’m already rushing over, and as soon as he stands up, I slam myself against his body and cling for dear life.

  “Oh my God, I can’t believe you’re here.”

  He squeezes me tight. “It felt like a never-ending trip,” he says with a chuckle.

  We ease back just enough for our lips to come together in a kiss. And then another. And finally, his tongue twirls around mine, and we’re lost in each other for the next sixty seconds.

  “It’s hot here,” he says, tugging on the neckline of his T-shirt. “When I left Ohio it was forty-three degrees and now it’s seventy-two.”

  I laugh. “I told you.”

  “Here’s your keys.” He drops them into my hand. “I’ll just grab my luggage and check in, and then we can do whatever you want.”

  I bite down on my lip. “I think I’ll just join you in your room for a little bit.”

  Elijah leans in to kiss me. “It’ll be a lot longer than a little bit.”

  “Mm. Good.”

  I walk with him into the lobby of the hotel, my arm hooked through his. “Feels good to be able to do this.”

  “I agree. I could even do this,” he says, giving me another kiss.

  “Mhm, and nobody can say anything about it.”

  We smile at each other, waiting in line for him to check in. “So, how’s Gia?” he asks.

  “She’s doing really good. She’s at an appointment right now, actually. She may be getting her casts off since it’s been six weeks, but we’ll see.”

  “That’s good.”

  “Yeah. She still gets headaches from the head injury, but she’s ready to go back to work. She’s losing her mind being ‘cooped up’ all the time.”

  Gia’s a nursing aide in a nursing home, and because of her injuries she won’t be able to go right back to helping patients in and out of bed or into the shower. She’ll have to stick with taking vitals, feeding them, combing their hair, and stuff like that until she’s better.

  “Are you planning on telling her about me while I’m here?” he questions, not a hint of frustration in his voice, just curiosity.

  “I’ve been thinking about it. She’ll question where I’m disappearing to.”

  “Do you think she’ll take issue with it?”

  I sigh. “I’m not sure. I mean, it’s not like you’re still my teacher.”

  “But I am still older than you.”

  “Yeah, but I don’t think that’s a big deal.”

  Our conversation halts as he speaks to the woman at the desk and gets checked in. Once he has his key, we make our way to the elevators.

  “What’s going on with Mario?” he asks.

  Elijah was so relieved to hear about him being arrested. He hated not being here with me when it happened, but he’s glad he doesn’t have to worry about anything happening to me anymore.

  “He’ll have a court date at some point. Until then, as long as he stays locked up, I’m happy.”

  “And I’m happy if you’re happy,” he says, pulling me into his side.

  “I’m definitely happy, and I’m ready to celebrate your arrival,” I say as the elevator doors open on the eighth floor.

  He smirks. “Well, let’s get started.”

  48

  Christmas Day

  Nova spends the morning with her sister and Greg, with plans to meet me at the hotel by two o’clock. The other day, I was able to go to the store and
grab one of those Christmas trees that’s only two feet tall and come pre-decorated.

  I look forward to our first holiday together. It’s not happening the way I would have planned, but it’s better than nothing.

  After setting the little tree up on the table in my room, I place Nova’s presents around it. The hotel’s restaurant is open, so we’ll have our Christmas dinner sent up. It’s the first time I haven’t been with my brothers, but this year, they have their own traditions to start. Cillian has Midge, Royce has London, and unfortunately, Merrick is stuck in New York with the band, but at least he isn’t alone.

  My phone buzzes with a text from Nova.

  Nova: My sister is asking questions about where I’m going on Christmas day.

  Me: Uh-oh. It may be time to tell her.

  Nova says her sister is already suspicious because for the last few days, she keeps leaving and saying she’s staying with a friend. I’m not bothered that she hasn’t told her, because that’s something she has to do on her own time.

  Nova: Maybe. But not right now. She’ll keep me here with a million questions, and I’m looking forward to our own celebration.

  * * *

  At exactly two o’clock there’s a knock on the door. I pull it open to find Nova on the other side, dressed in a white T-shirt that says Teacher’s Pet on it. She’s got a joyful smile on her face, like she’s been waiting to show me this shirt.

  “Nice,” I say with a laugh, tugging her into the room. “Is this what you wore in front of your sister?”

  Nova throws her head back with a boisterous laugh. “No, I changed just for you.”

  We come together for a kiss, our arms wrapped around one another. “Merry Christmas.” My lips move over hers.

  “Merry Christmas.”