by Chloe Walsh
"Are you going to be in trouble?" I asked him.
Noah shrugged noncommittally. "He shouldn't have touched what's mine."
"Except I'm not yours, Noah," I reminded him. "And now you've punched one of your bosses…"
"Thorn, it's fine," he snapped. "I'll figure this out."
Tightening his hold on the wheel, Noah cleared his throat roughly. "You shouldn’t have gone off on your own." Frowning he added, "You could've been hurt."
"Could've been hurt?" I shot back sarcastically. "Oh yeah, because Gonzalez putting his hands in my knickers was so much fun. That didn’t hurt at all." I shuddered and leaned my head back against the seat. "I need to shower."
Noah didn’t reply to that, but the way the car swerved slightly proved he was listening.
"Why do you do this?" I asked him when the lights of the city came into view.
"I do this for reasons you'll never understand," he said stiffly.
"Why do you fight?" I pressed, not satisfied with his noncommittal reply.
"Why do I fight?" Noah repeated my question and he seemed to think about it for a moment. "Because I don’t know how to do anything else."
"Yes, you do." I sighed heavily. "You're a senior in high school for Christ's sake. There are other jobs and sports you could be doing – legally."
"I need the release, Teagan," Noah grumbled as we pulled onto Thirteenth Street. "I need it to take the edge off of…life."
"That's a really pathetic reason," I told him as we pulled into my driveway.
Hissing out a sharp breath Noah jacked the handbrake and slammed the palm of his hand against the steering wheel. "I've been through more shit than you could ever relate to, Teagan." He was staring straight ahead, breathing fast and hard. "So don’t fucking dare call me or anything I do pathetic. You have no idea of what I've…" He stopped and clenched his fist. "Just don’t."
There was something about the way Noah's voice rose – the deep pain in his voice – that touched something raw inside of me. I realized I was worried about him, even though a huge part of me hated his guts.
"Tell me, Noah," I urged. I knew I should walk away right now, leave him to it, but I couldn’t. We were on the verge of something – what, I had no clue, but I could feel it in my bones. "Make me understand…" My words trailed off as I studied at his closed off expression. Piss him off… Get him to talk by pissing him off. "Or is your real reason for beating people to a pulp as pathetic as your fake one?"
"Teagan, back the fuck off," he snarled. Opening his door Noah climbed out and slammed the door before leaning against it. "My reasons are my own which means they – I – have nothing to do with you. Get that through your head. Fuck."
Anger boiled in my veins and I unfastened my seatbelt and scrambled out of the car. "Fine," I spat. Leaning over the roof of my car I narrowed my eyes and glared at him. "I'm just the girl who was almost raped because of your need for a release."
Noah flinched and I was glad.
"Teagan, I'm…" Noah stopped abruptly and tossed my keys over the roof of my car instead. "Just go home."
I caught them mid-air and shook my head, feeling hurt, angry and weirdly emotional. "I'm not doing this anymore, Noah," I told him, detaching my car key from the rest of the bunch before shoving my key across the hood towards him.
Noah picked up my key and frowned at me.
I held my hands up in retreat. "I'm out," I told him, feeling crazed and irrational as I backed up the steps of my porch. "I'm not going to fight with you anymore."
"Your key?" His face was a mask of indifference but I could have sworn I saw pain in those brown depths for the briefest of moments.
"I don’t give a damn about my car," I screamed dramatically, pushing my wet hair back from my face. "And if it means you'll leave me alone then have the fucking thing. Consider it my white flag. I'm bowing out of this war." I turned my key in the door before looking back at him. "Tell your sister she won," I said coldly as I stepped inside. "You both have."
****
Chapter 14
Noah
"Tell your sister she won," Teagan shouted, eyes filled with tears. "You both have," she added and her voice broke.
I knew I should go after her. Stop her… Apologize… Convince her that I wasn’t the heartless bastard she thought I was. But the truth wasn’t something I could talk about. Not to her. Not to anyone…
The girl…dammit she meant something to me. I was steel reeling from that kiss we shared in the car. Jesus, her lips felt like heaven. I felt a huge urge to protect her – shelter her from the bullshit of my life.
How the hell would she understand something I didn’t understand myself. And her knowing the truth would put her in worse danger than she already was in. I couldn’t allow that.
I couldn’t fucking bear it…
Instead I stood like a dummy with the key of her car in my hand, feeling more useless than I had in years as Teagan walked away from me.
The house was eerily quiet when I let myself inside and the power still wasn’t back. The storm had probably blown down a mast or something.
After lighting a shitload of candles, I grabbed my phone and slipped outside and walked down to my makeshift gym, bracing myself for the phone call I had no doubt was coming.
****
Teagan
The second I closed my front door I stripped my pajamas and socks off in the hallway, desperate to be rid of the icky sensation before switching on the light.
Nothing happened.
I tried the light switch in the lounge and then the kitchen before admitting defeat.
I was in the middle a power cut.
Panic tore through me.
Here I was, naked as the day I was born, in the dark….
I managed to find a clean t-shirt of Uncle Max's in the laundry hamper and shrugged it on before feeling my way over to the sink to root for a flash-light. Thankfully I found one and switched it on.
The relief I felt from that tiny yellow orb of light was huge and I sagged against the counter. The wind was picking up outside, the sound of trees swaying against the heavy breeze was growing louder and louder, bringing with it a whole truckload of memories I didn’t care to entertain.
What the hell was I supposed to do now?
Sit in the dark and wait for daylight?
I wasn’t afraid of a bit of wind and rain, it was a given where I came from, but I was terrified of the dark – especially being alone in the dark.
The walls of the kitchen began to close in on me, crushing my windpipe, pressing hard against my skull, and I didn’t think twice about reaching for the backdoor and escaping outside.
It was pitch-black when I stepped outside, the night air was sharp and cutting, but the relief of not being enclosed was enough to calm my nerves.
A loud noise startled me to the left of the bed of petunias and I froze. The sound of a man's voice broke through the silence and I found myself drawn to his voice – Noah's voice.
Without thinking twice about what I was doing, I closed out the door behind me and crept over to the far end of the wall – the one that separated our gardens – and crouched low, shifting around until I found an upturned plastic flowerpot to sit on.
"…Don’t you think I know that, T..."
I stopped breathing. Was he on the phone or was someone out here with him?
"…broken rib…"
Who had a broken rib? Did Noah have a broken rib? I hadn’t realized…
"…Yeah, me, douchebag…"
I dropped my torch with fright and had to cover my mouth as the fear of god spread through me. I'd thought Noah was answering my thoughts but thankfully he rambled on.
"…No, he doesn’t know about it…"
He sounded annoyed.
"…She's not for you, T…"
Who? Who wasn't for him?
"…I mean it…"
I cracked the flower pot I was sitting on.
I cracked the fucking flower pot.
>
"…Hang on, I think someone's out here."
I clenched my eyes shut and stayed as still as a statue for the longest time.
"…No, must've been a bear or a mountain lion," I heard him say and my heart froze in my chest.
They had bears and mountain lions?
Of course they bloody had and now I was going to be nom-noms for one of them.
Fuck that. Run. Run. Haul ass to the house.
Dropping onto my hands and knees, I crawled as quietly as I could through the mud and leaves towards the house, trampling the bed of petunias in my bid to survive. I made it to the back door and felt around for the door handle.
It wasn't bloody there.
Where the hell did it go?
Dammit, I could have kicked myself in the ass for dropping my flashlight in my rush to safety.
"Curiosity killed the kitty," I heard a voice say and I could have wept.
A light shone down on my head and I ducked my face in shame.
It wasn't a bear or a lion.
It was worse…
****
"Noah," I sighed heavily. "I was just…" I racked my brain, trying to think of a good enough lie to explain why I was outside in the dark, on my hands and knees and covered in compost.
"You were just eavesdropping on a private conversation," Noah offered, his eyes dark, his brows set in a deep frown.
"What're you…Where'd you…" I looked up and glared at him. "You're trespassing on private property – again."
Okay, so not the right thing to say.
Noah clenched his jaw and I felt a sizzle of fear burn through me. "Get up," he growled.
"No." I shook my head. "I'm good where I am thanks."
He sighed in annoyance. "It's freezing cold. The whole street is out," he grumbled gesturing to the sky with his torch. "And you, genius, have locked yourself by the looks of it."
"I have not," I said defensively. "I just don't see well in the dark, that's all. I can't find the handle. If you shine your torch on the door I'll be out of your way in a jiffy."
"You can't see what isn’t there," he grumbled. "That door?" He raised his brows. "Its key accessible only."
I glared at the door. "You tricky bitch…"
"You like talking to wood, don't you, Thorn?" he mused.
"Oh yes," I snapped as I climbed to my feet. "I can't wait to talk to the wood surrounding your dead body."
"Nice," he chuckled. "But you'll be waiting a while."
"I wouldn't be so sure if I were you," I spat.
"What makes you say that?" he asked in an oddly curious tone.
"Hmm, let's see." I pretended to check the reasons off with my fingers. "You fight violently, you smoke constantly, you drink excessively – you more than likely consume illegal substances – and you most definitely sleep around."
I looked him up and down, a look a pure disgust. "The cheerleaders talk, Noah." They didn’t – well, not to me at least, but it was an educated guess. "I'll give you 'til you're thirty-five – thirty if that nasty temper gets the better of you."
"Thanks for the morbid checklist," Noah said flatly. "I was going to help you out, but considering you're still a judgmental bitch you can help yourself."
Noah turned to leave and a sudden burst of fear flooded me.
"Wait." I grabbed his elbow. "You're going to leave me here?" I swallowed deeply. "Alone?"
"You'll survive," he said mockingly, pulling free from my grasp. "A tough girl like you," he taunted. "You can talk to some trees if you get lonely. Oh, and watch out for the bears," he added spitefully.
"Wait…Noah, please wait." I raced after him, clutching onto the back of his t-shirt with a death grip.
He took pity on me and stopped walking causing me to smack into his back. I staggered backwards as I tried to regain my balance.
Surprisingly, Noah reached out and caught me and when I felt his hand cover mine my pulse thumped so hard I was almost certain he could feel it.
Nemesis or not, Noah Messina was currently the only thing standing between me and isolated darkness. "Please don’t leave me on my own."
"You're a fucking thorn in my side," he told me, but he didn’t let go of my hand. Instead he held my hand as he walked. The feel of his hand covering mine caused my stomach to twist and flip around.
"Let go for a sec," Noah ordered when we got to the bottom of the garden.
"No way." I held onto his hand with both of mine. Knowing how much bad blood was between us, he would disappear and leave me on my own out here.
"Teagan, let go," he repeated clearly annoyed. "I'll help you over, but I need to jump the wall first."
"I can't," I hissed. It was true. My hands were glued to his in fear. "Please…"
Noah growled and muttered a swear word before crouching down. "Climb on my back, Thorn," he ordered and I did, choosing to ignore the jibe. I wanted to live; name-calling and snarky retorts weren't a priority right now.
I wrapped my legs around Noah's waist and held on for dear life. "Dammit, Teagan, move your hands," he grumbled.
"Sorry," I whispered and moved my hands from where I was covering his eyes.
"Hold on tight," he ordered and I tightened my grip on his neck. I felt his Adams apple bob against my fingers. "Not…that…tight," he complained, gripping my bare thighs firmly.
A hot flash of desire hit me directly in the groin and the way Noah moved, jostling us as he climbed over the wall wasn't doing anything to ease the tension in my body.
The throbbing increased and I moaned when he jumped to the ground, my clit receiving some serious one on one from his back.
"You're really scared, aren't you?" Noah asked in a softer tone when we reached his back door. His breath tickled my forearm. "Your entire body is shaking."
"Mmm," was all I replied – all I dared to allow myself to say as I climbed down from his back and shifted around nervously from foot to foot.
"Where's your family tonight?" I asked him when Noah opened his door and let us inside. I was pleasantly surprised to see his kitchen, which was similar to mine, was lit with several soft-glowing candles. "Are they here?" The silence was eerie and I remembered the murders in the house across the street.
"Stop asking questions," he mumbled, closing the door behind me.
"Are you home alone?" My eyes followed his movements. "All by yourself?"
"Yeah, I'm home alone, please don't call CPS," Noah mocked before rolling his eyes. "I'm eighteen, Teagan, not eight."
"I didn't mean..." I felt my cheeks redden. "Forget it."
"What were you doing outside?" His brown eyes studied me closely and I could feel my cheeks reddening.
"I'm afraid of the dark," I blurted out.
"You're afraid of the dark so you go outside in the dark," he stated in an irritated tone as he stood with his back to the door, frowning at me. "You're wet."
"What? N-no, I'm not," I argued, my voice squeaky and high-pitched as I discreetly crossed my legs.
"You're soaking," he corrected me. "It's dark in here but I'm not blind, Teagan."
I automatically looked down which was the about the worst thing I could do because not only did I realize I was wet, I learned Noah was right about something else. I was soaking.
Droplets of rain covered my skin. My thighs were sticky, I was drenched and my only saving grace was the fact that Uncle Max's red t-shirt fell to my thighs.
Die, die, dear god let me die…
You hate him…don't you?
It's okay, you're both mature people.
It's a natural occurrence. Just…shake it off.
And that's about when I realized another thing. Noah gave me a piggyback.
A freaking piggyback.
A high-pitched whine slipped out of my mouth and I truly felt like lifting my face towards the sky and howling like a wolf. Because of Noah Messina's exceptional ability to summon a tsunami from my vagina I was going to spend the rest of the school year being tortured. Mortification and
sexual frustration festered inside of my body. I would never live this down. He would never let me live this down – if he knew…
Did he know?
I studied his face.
He didn't look like he knew.
He looked…well he looked rigid. He was frowning – nothing new there – and his hands were balled into fists at his sides.
I wondered if it was possible that my vagina could have a mind of its own because the signals she was flashing out were all kinds of crazy. And then I wondered why the hell my core was pulsing so much?
He was a bastard – a mean, cruel, sarcastic, oh-so-beautiful bastard. I knew this.
Get with the program, vagina.
How was I supposed to get his top off without him knowing my true intentions? Without him smelling my true intentions…
"Can I have your t-shirt?" Smooth, Teagan. "I mean, will you take your top off for me." Ugh…I loathed myself.
Noah raised his brow in surprise. "I'm not a complete bastard, Teagan, I'll get you a clean shirt."
"No," I shouted before letting out a nervous giggle – more like cackle. "No…" I tucked my hair behind my ears nervously. "I want your one. Uh, please?"
"You're the strangest creature I never knew existed," he mused thoughtfully as he studied me with his razor sharp eyes.
Whatever Noah was looking for on my face he obviously didn't find because he hissed in frustration before sucking in a sharp breath. "Wait here," he ordered in a tight voice as he roughly ran a hand through his hair. "I'll get something for you to wear."
Noah brushed past me and I could clearly see – even in the dim lighting which made being able to see it ten times worse – the stain of my err…girlie juices on his white shirt.
Oh, sweet merciful lord...
Think, Teagan, think…
"Noah, wait," I yelped as I lifted the hem of my t-shirt and pulled it over my head. "I'm naked."
Noah's froze – his whole body tensed – and then he slowly turned around and looked at me.
Covering my breasts with my hands I shifted around awkwardly. "And I really need your shirt."