by Chloe Walsh
Grabbing a roll of tape off the bench, I quickly taped my knuckles – all while ignoring a fuming looking Ellie. "What makes you think I've grown a conscience?"
"The Noah I knew wouldn’t take her shit lying down…"
"I'm not lying down," I spat.
"Then when?" she demanded. "When are you going to make her pay?"
I didn't answer Ellie's question – I couldn’t. Instead I pummeled my fists against the punching bag, letting off some steam and letting her know this conversation was over for me.
"If you don’t then I will, Noah," Ellie warned me and a flash of concern for the girl-next-door rushed through me.
****
Teagan
I slept badly last night, waking up around four in the morning with a crick in my neck from sleeping on the couch. Even though I went upstairs to bed and tried to get some shut eye I became so restless that I ended up getting up and showering at 5am.
Out of boredom I had taken more care than I usually would in my appearance, straightening my ash-blonde hair so it fell artfully down my back, and applying full make up before dressing in a sleeveless white chemise, black skinny jeans and my chucks. By the time I was dressed and fed I still had about an hour to spare before I had to leave for school so I decided to sit on my porch and have a bash off Martin.
I played quietly, aware that I wasn’t in a swamp, allowing my fingers to glide over the strings as I played an acoustic version of Florence and the Machine's Kiss with a Fist.
"You hit me once I hit you back…" As I played my mind drifted to the Facebook message I'd received from one of the girl's in my class back home.
She'd let it slip that Liam was seeing Katie Horgan now – had been since the week I left. Three years together and he'd gotten over me in less than a week.
Well fuck him…
Throwing my head my, I closed my eyes and allowed myself to become engrossed in the song I was playing, letting the music flood me, drowning out the pain of Liam's fickle love and his stupid penis. "…A kick in the teeth is good for some…"
"A kiss with a fist is better than none."
I screamed, literally screamed at the top of my lungs, and jumped to my feet, wielding Martin as a weapon as I swung around and locked eyes on the creeper who'd frightened me.
"You." Narrowing my eyes, I lowered my guitar and let out a shaky breath. "You nearly gave me a heart attack."
Noah smirked from where he was sitting on his porch before taking a sip from his mug. "You seem attached to that thing." He inclined his head towards Martin. "Good to know." The way he said it was menacing and I immediately stiffened.
"Don’t even think about doing anything to Martin," I hissed. "I will hurt you if you so much as look at him crooked."
"Martin?" Noah snorted. "You do realize it’s a guitar, right? Just a piece of wood with a hole in it."
"To you maybe," I snapped as I placed Martin back in his case and closed the lid before tucking it against the wall of my porch. "To me it’s a vessel."
"You're a strange type of girl," he said dryly.
"And you are a noisy-assed neighbor," I shot back angrily. "Belated birthday wishes and all but other people have to live on this street, too."
"You could hear them last night?" he asked and the way he said it bothered the hell out of me.
"Yes, I could hear you partying to your heart's content," I informed him. "I also heard the latest figures on the number of smokers dying of lung disease." I stared meaningfully at his cigarette. "It's not good news, I'm afraid."
"You're not what I expected," Noah mused as he got to his feet and made his way down his porch steps.
There was no wall separating our front yards. He tipped the remainder of what was in his mug onto the grass between our driveways and then took a long drag of his cigarette before flicking the butt onto my side of the yard.
I rolled my eyes and stalked down my porch steps towards him. "And what did you expect?" I asked haughtily as I picked up his cigarette butt, quenched it and then threw it back at him. Unfortunately the breeze went against me and the cigarette butt landed on my side of the driveway.
Noah laughed and I muttered a curse under my breath before chasing after it.
"Not you," Noah replied as he exhaled heavily. "I didn’t expect you."
"You're acting stranger than usual," I told him as I marched back to where he was standing. "No sarcastic comments or crushing insults this morning?"
"Not yet," he replied as he stared at me, like really stared at me.
Hooking my fingers in the pocket of Noah's jeans I stuffed his cigarette butt inside his pocket before wiping my hands on his black t-shirt. "Don’t drop your shit in my yard," I said sweetly. I rested my hands on my hips and glared up at his stupid face. He was staring at me in such a way I was beginning to get freaked out. "What are you up to?"
No reply, just more staring…
"Stop looking at me like that, Noah, I mean it," I snapped.
"I think I like looking at you," he finally replied with a sigh.
He sounded reluctant. How sweet.
You think? "Since when?" I asked, my tone a mix of annoyance and disbelief.
"Since now," he husked before snaking his arm out and grabbing the back of my neck. His lips crushed against mine and I was momentarily lost in a burst of emotions and feelings.
A fierce blast of pleasure coursed through me, followed by a demanding pulsing in my groin. My body went pliant in his arms, clearly lost to sensation. The second his tongue invaded my mouth I came crashing back to earth with a bang. Out of the pure shock of feeling Noah Messina's tongue down my throat I did what any girl would do in my situation.
I bit down.
Hard.
"Fuck." Jerking away from me, Noah proceeded to dab his tongue with his thumb. "What the hell, Teagan?"
"It's your fault," I shot back, but the fight went out of me when I noticed the blood on his thumb. "Oh my god," I mumbled. "You're bleeding."
"You're sharp," he snapped before wiping his mouth with the back of his hand and glaring at me.
"You better hope you've got a strong stomach."
"Why?" I asked warily.
Noah smirked. "My tongue bar." He opened his mouth and stuck out his tongue. "You must've swallowed it." Shrugging, he added, "Hope it doesn’t pierce anything important."
"I'm going to die," I cried before clutching my throat. Coughing as hard as I could I attempted to spit it out all while Noah laughed his ass off.
"It's not funny," I spluttered between coughs as I jumped up and paced the ground. "I could have internal bleeding. I could sever my bowel. Any number of things could happen to me."
"Calm down," he taunted. "Moving around could jostle it and cause it to sever…"
"Shut up," I screamed before kicking his mug – that had fallen to the ground during his assault of my mouth – at him. "This was your plan all along, wasn’t it?" I demanded as tears filled my eyes. "To get me back for damaging your car by murdering me."
Noah laughed and I wailed.
"Death from a kiss," I sobbed.
"Don’t worry," Noah taunted. "I'll give you the kiss of life."
"You've done enough," I spat. "You verbally attack me with that thing on a regular basis, but that's not enough for you, is it…oh no, since now I'm going to choke to death because you feel the need to put jewelry on it."
"Teagan, calm down."
"I hope it falls off you," I hissed before groaning. "Mortally wounded by a piece of metal that's touched other girl's genitals…." My stomach heaved. "I'm gonna be sick."
"Teagan, you are not going to die." Grabbing my shoulders with his hands, Noah held me still, moving his face from side to side until he caught my eye. "You're not dying, okay?" he said in a noticeably softer tone as he rubbed my arms with his surprisingly warm hands. "You didn’t swallow it."
I felt myself calming slightly and it became easier to breathe. "I didn’t?"
He shook his head sl
owly, eyes locked on mine before opening his mouth to reveal the evil silver ball, pride of place in the middle of his tongue.
"You asshole," I said with a gasp. "I almost had a heart-attack."
"Revenge is sweet," he chuckled, still grinning at me. "Happy Halloween, Thorn."
"Yeah," I spat before lifting my knee and ramming it into Noah's crotch. "You too, ass-bandit."
"You crazy bitch," he hissed as he dropped to his knees and groaned in agony.
"I hope it falls off you," I roared as I stalked back to my house. "And I don’t mean your tongue."
****
Noah
I was in a shitty mood by the time I made it to school. My lips were tingling and my tongue was throbbing.
What the hell had I been thinking – kissing that little fruitcake? She named her guitar Martin and talked to it like it was her favorite child for Christ's sakes.
You kissed that little fruitcake because she's the first person to set you on fire and make you feel something other than numbness…
Shaking my head, I tried to force all thoughts of Teagan out of my mind as I walked through the student parking lot, but the sight of her red Civic made it impossible.
My stomach sank when I saw who was standing beside Teagan's car, and it sank even further when I recognized what that someone was holding.
Oh shit…
****
Chapter 8
Teagan
I was seriously regretting kneeing Noah Messina in the balls this morning – not the biting his tongue part because that he had most definitely deserved, but I’d gone too far. Thankfully I hadn’t seen him all day, but I knew my good luck wouldn’t last forever. I felt on edge. He'd messed with my head by kissing me.
What the hell had that been about?
And why the hell had I enjoyed it…
My last class before break was dismissed early so I bought my lunch and sat at our usual table and waited for Hope and Ash to join me. The cafeteria filled quickly – and noisily – and I played with my apple while I waited for the girls, rolling it between my hands absentmindedly.
I found myself looking up when the chattering around me seemed to die away. Countless pairs of eyes were watching me…whispering and pointing at where I was sitting.
It didn’t take a genius to guess someone was standing behind me, but I didn’t bother turning. Instead I continued rolling my apple around aimlessly, purposefully ignoring the hushed whispers and stares.
Someone cleared their throat behind me and then I felt an electric surge penetrate my shoulder when that someone touched my shoulder.
Leaning over my shoulder so close I could feel his stomach against my back, he whispered in my ear, "Teagan, can I have a word outside?"
Noah's fingers lingered on my bare shoulder and I jerked away, the feel of his skin on mine too personal, before forcing myself to turn and face him. "There's nothing to talk about, Noah," I told him stiffly. "I shouldn’t have kicked you. I know that. Move on."
Noah exhaled impatiently and his minty breath blew into my face. "Just come outside, will you?" he snapped before running his hand through his hair. "I need to show you something – explain something."
I wasn’t going anywhere with him.
God only knew what trick he had up his sleeve. I had wrecked his car, his iPad, and his prospects of fatherhood. The guy was out to get me.
I could see Hope watching me from the cafeteria line, along with the rest of the room and I didn't want to make a scene. "Not a chance," I replied slowly. "So go away and leave me alone."
"Fine," Noah spat before straightening up to his full height. "Fucking suit yourself." With that he spun around and stalked out of the cafeteria.
"Hey, Teagan, how's it going?" Jason Graham, an arrogant blonde douche from my English class said seconds before sliding into the chair opposite me.
I didn’t like this guy.
There was something incredibly off about him. Of course my immediate dislike for him may have stemmed from the fact that I'd spent a huge chunk of the summer having to endure watching him suck Ellie's face off. He was all up in Ellie Dennis's space, which made him no friend of mine.
"What were you and Messina talking about?"
I stared back at him and gave him my best why-are-you-talking-to-me-we're-not-friends look.
"Looked pretty intense?" Jason added, clearly not getting my drift.
"It was," I responded dryly. "We were trying to decide which position to have sex in tonight."
"You and Messina were talking about sex?" Jason's eyes widened and I rolled my eyes at his sheer stupidity. "Are you…" his voice trailed off and he looked around the room before looking back at me. "Are you serious?"
"Uh-huh," I added sarcastically. "Noah says I won't get pregnant if we have sex standing up. I told him that wasn’t true. What do you think?"
"I think you're too good for him and every other douche in this school," Colton Carter added with a chuckle as he slid into the seat beside me before winking devilishly, his blue eyes dancing with mischief. "Hey beautiful."
"Hey Colt," I said in an amused tone. I'd quickly learned in the short time I'd been in Colorado that Hope's brother was an incorrigible flirt.
For a junior in high school, Colton had an impressive way with the ladies. Along with the fact that he was drop dead gorgeous – as were his brothers – Colton had a way of making you feel like you were the only girl in his world. Thankfully I could see through his charm thus making me immune to such lethal personality traits.
"Back off, Colt," Hope added, shooting her brother a warning look as she and her brother Cameron joined us.
"Jason Graham," Cam sneered as he flashed Jason a dangerous looking smile. "What the fuck do you want?"
I snickered and Jason's face paled.
Hope smiled sweetly at Jason's red face. "Seriously," she said with a grin. "What do you want?"
"I was talking to Teagan," Jason, clearly finding his balls, growled, glaring at the Carter siblings.
"Yeah," Colt chuckled nudging my arm. "About Messina's dick."
"Screw you, Carter," Jason snarled, jerking out of his seat, red-faced and fuming.
"No thanks, dude, I like pussy," Colt shot back with a teaspoon in his mouth as he tore the cover off his yoghurt.
"Ugh. Christ, Colt, I'm trying to eat here," Cameron groaned before tossing a French fry at his brother. Colt caught it mid-air with his mouth and chewed with relish.
"What's up with him?" Ash, who'd just joined our table, asked, pointing at Jason as he stalked out of the cafeteria.
"It's his time of the month," Colt mumbled before putting a spoonful of yoghurt into his mouth and groaning in pleasure. "Mmm," he purred. "This is the first half-decent thing I've eaten since yesterday."
"Are you dieting, Colton?" Ash teased.
"More like protecting the lining of his stomach," Cam scoffed before explaining. "Mom cooked us a casserole before she and dad left for Vegas – and she put four more in the freezer."
All three Carter siblings shuddered.
"Poor Logan," Hope mused. "He needs to learn…"
"Excuse me."
A tall, curvaceous red-head stood at our table looking obnoxiously smug. I immediately recognized her from Ellie's gaggle of geese. I think her name was Rice or Reese or something like that.
"Yes?" I responded in a tone as equally condescending as she'd used.
"You own the red car in the parking lot, right?"
"I'm sure there's more than just one red car parked outside, but yes," I replied drolly, knowing full well she knew exactly what car I drove.
"You may want to look on your car." She narrowed her eyes and smirked spitefully at me. "Looks like someone really did a number on it."
Dropping the spoon I was using to stir my coffee with, I shoved my chair back and stood up.
"And you wouldn’t happen to know who that someone is, would you?" I snarled as I stormed past her towards the door, not waiting to hear her
answer. Goddammit, I'd only replaced the tires. What the hell had they done now?
I knew the Carters and Ash were following me – I could hear them calling my name – and probably half the school, but I didn’t care. A really bad feeling had settled in the pit of my stomach and I broke into a run when I reached the front door of the school, stumbling down the steps in my rush to get to the parking lot.
When I reached the back of my car I was out of breath and panting. My car looked fine, the same as it usually did. I checked the back tires before walking around to check on the front ones.
Something on the hood of my car caught my eye and I glanced upwards. When I realized what was lying on top of my car, strings burst, wooden body smashed to pieces, a scream ripped from my throat.
"Shit," I heard someone say from behind me.
"Teagan," Hope said as she slipped her arm around me. I shrugged her off. I did not want to be touched or consoled right now.
Martin…my guitar, the last thing my mother had ever given me…all I had left of my mother…destroyed, smashed into pieces.
Anger fused through my body. I swear I could feel my heart cracking into pieces. This was so unfair.
All I had left of her…
I didn’t need Rice or Reese or whatever the hell her name was to tell me who did this. I already knew.
I left Martin on the porch this morning…
I forgot to bring him inside…
"Son of a bitch," I screamed before grabbing what was left of my broken guitar and turning around, glaring at the crowd of students who were standing around watching me. I didn’t care about any of their faces. I only cared about finding one face and when I found it my lip curled up menacingly.
"Are you proud of yourself?" I demanded as I stalked towards where Noah was leaning against a car with his arms folded.
He didn’t look proud.
He didn’t look anything really.
He stared emotionlessly as I came towards him with my trashed guitar.
"You're jumping to conclusions, Thorn," Noah said coolly, about two seconds before I smashed my broken guitar over his head.