by M. Leighton
“Phlebotomist? Are those the ones that draw blood?”
“Yes, we’re the ones that draw blood,” she confirmed with a smile.
We stared at each other for a few moments, silence quickly closing in and becoming uncomfortable. I didn’t know what else to say and apparently she didn’t either.
“Well,” she said, rising to her feet. “I’ll let you rest until Bo gets back.” She walked to the door and then turned back. “Is there anything I can get you right now?”
“No, thank you,” I said, feeling like enough of a bother already. With a smile, Ms. Bowman disappeared into the hall.
“Ms. Bowman?” I stopped her. Though it was silly and ridiculous, there was one question I had to ask. When she poked her head back around the door jamb, I stammered awkwardly, “D-did Bo mention me?”
She smiled again, but this time there was a hint of sadness behind the curve of her lips. “Yes.” Then, with no further explanation, she walked away.
Despite her strange reaction, my heart sang. I lay there for the next few minutes, happily drinking in Bo’s scent and basking in the glow of this latest revelation.
My stomach twittered when I heard him come in. He asked, “Is she awake?”
I managed to sit up on the edge of his bed without getting sick, which I took as a good sign. I smoothed my hair as I waited for him to find his way to me.
Too quietly for me to hear, I heard him something else of his mother and then his heavy footsteps clonked toward the bedroom. With every thump, my heart beat a little bit faster. In a bizarre way, I could almost feel him getting closer.
When he appeared in the doorway, I couldn’t stop the smile that spread across my face.
“Hey,” I said simply, feeling like a nervous schoolgirl with a crush.
He leaned one shoulder against the door jamb. “Hey yourself,” he said with a casual grin that made my belly flip over excitedly. “How do you feel?”
I shrugged. “Fine.” Actually, now that he was here, I felt better than fine, but I wasn’t about to tell him that.
Pushing himself upright, he crossed the room and sat down beside me on the bed. I turned to look at him. He was facing me and, therefore, facing the lamp. The dim glow of the bulb illuminated his features and I was struck by how perfectly handsome he was. Out of nowhere, desire curled inside me like a tightly-wound spring, making me breathless.
He reached up and stroked my cheek with his finger. Unlike what I’d come to expect from him, Bo’s skin was extremely warm, almost hot. “Does it hurt?”
I shook my head.
He walked his fingertips all along my jaw and chin. I assumed he was inspecting me for injury, but I didn’t really care. As long as he didn’t stop touching me and looking at me like that, it didn’t matter what he was doing.
“I thought he’d really hurt you,” he confessed, his lips thinning angrily.
“I thought so, too.”
“He’s lucky I didn’t—” He stopped himself on a growl.
I wanted to smile at his reaction, but I didn’t. Instead I asked, “So, what happened?”
Bo shrugged. “You fell into my arms and I brought you here.”
I rolled my eyes in exasperation.
“I kinda figured that out on my own. I meant what happened with Drew?”
“Well, after I convinced him not to put his hands on you—ever—he just stood there and watched me carry you off.”
“Convinced?”
Bo nodded nonchalantly. I was afraid to ask about specifics; I was pretty sure I didn’t want the details. I just hoped he didn’t pulverize Drew. That would be adding another insult to his already injured pride, and I had enough to feel guilty about.
“Thanks for not taking me home.” I looked away from his too-keen eyes when I said, “If my mom had been there, it would have been a disaster.”
Most likely, she wouldn’t even have been home, and even if she had been, she’d probably have been too drunk to notice or care what shape my face was in. The disaster would’ve been in Bo seeing that my mom is a lush.
“I’d say ‘my pleasure,’ but if I’m gonna carry you to my bed, I’d much rather you be conscious,” he said with a wry quirk of his lips.
I felt the blood rush to my cheeks, not in embarrassment, but in pleasure. Just the thought of Bo carrying me to his bed and laying me down on the thick black comforter was enough to raise my blood pressure to stroke level.
I wondered if maybe he was thinking the same thing because, as I watched, the dark, dark brown of his eyes disappeared behind the widening blackness of his pupils.
With a quick shake of his head, Bo cleared his throat and looked away. “So I guess it’s time I take you home, huh?”
I couldn’t say no, no matter how much I wanted to. “I guess so.”
Bo stood and held out his hand. “Come on,” he said, tipping his head toward the door.
I slipped my hand into his. The room was so chilly, the warmth of his skin felt heavenly. I rose, letting him lead me out the door and down the hall.
We stopped just inside the doorway to a tiny yellow kitchen. “You met Mom, right?” His mother turned from the sink to smile at me.
“I introduced myself to her,” she said, smiling. Then, to me, “Are you feeling better?”
“Yes, ma’am. Thank you.”
“You’re welcome. Come back any time,” she offered kindly, turning back to the sink.
Bo tugged on my arm and we left through a door off the kitchen. It led to a back porch where a washer and dryer sat to one side and a huge trunk-style freezer sat to the other. The exit from that room led to the back yard, which was apparently where the driveway ended, as there was an old blue Volvo station wagon parked right in front of the door.
“Mom’s car,” he announced, as if by way of explanation. “She works nights.”
He opened the passenger door and then closed it once I was safely inside. When he slid behind the wheel, I asked, “Does she have to work tonight?”
“Yeah.”
“Is she going to be late?”
Bo shrugged. “Just a little, but she already called. It’s no big deal.”
Great! What a way to make a first impression on his mother.
The trip home went by way too quickly. Much to my surprise, Bo didn’t live very far from me at all.
When he pulled into the driveway, Mom’s car was already there, which was a shocker.
“Here we are,” I said, turning to Bo. “Thanks again for…well, everything.”
“So, do you mind my asking what happened with you and Connors?”
I smiled at the scathing way he said Drew’s last name. “We broke up,” I answered simply.
“Why?”
My smile died. The way he said it made it sound almost like a complaint, like something he couldn’t understand.
I tried to sound casual. “Things change. Feelings change, that’s all.”
“Good. I didn’t want it to have anything to do with me.”
For some unfathomable reason, that hurt.
“I’m not good for you, Ridley. Not like I should be, not like you need me to be.”
I was confused. He acted as if he really liked me, but now, here he was trying to convince me that he’s not right for me again.
“Don’t worry,” I said, opening the car door. “It had nothing to do with you.”
I got out of the car and closed the door on my lie. I caught myself before I stomped off petulantly. Instead, I took a deep breath and bent down to look at Bo through the open window.
“Thanks again,” I repeated, trying to appear nonchalant when I felt anything but that. It was impossible to feel nonchalant about something that was crushing my chest.
When Bo said nothing, I walked quickly to the house, rushing to get inside before the tears that welled in my eyes fell and embarrassed me further.
As I was opening the front door, I heard Bo call from the driveway, “See you tomorrow.”
I
didn’t get much sleep that night either.
********
The next morning, I woke up surprisingly alert and energetic. Not surprisingly, my first waking thought was of Bo. His scent, his eyes, his voice, even his name hummed through my veins. It was as if my body was as consumed with him as my mind seemed to be.
It has to be done if I’m gonna heal her.
Throwing off the covers, I ran into the bathroom, turned on the light and looked into the mirror. I almost wanted to see a rainbow of colors across my face, as if that would make the memory of those troubling words less bothersome. But, much to my consternation, there was no swelling, no discoloration, no evidence at all that I’d been brutally punched only twelve short hours before.
I opened my mouth wide and wiggled my jaw left to right, front to back. There was not even a twinge of pain.
“Huh,” I said to my reflection. I know I didn’t imagine the excruciating pain, nor did I imagine passing out and waking up in Bo’s room.
It has to be done if I’m gonna heal her.
Shaking my head, I tucked the disquieting thoughts into a dark corner in the back of my mind, deciding instead to be grateful that I hadn’t spent the night in surgery getting my jaw wired shut.
After getting ready in record time, I got in my car and headed for Starbuck’s. I’d have plenty of time to make a coffee stop, especially since the shop was so close to the school.
The drive-thru was packed so I got out and went inside. When I stepped through the door, a gush of pleasure and relief washed over me. It was so intense and so unexpected, I literally had to stop to catch my breath.
I looked around at the many faces inside the tiny store. I recognized several people and, if the way they were looking at me was any indication, my outburst from the day before had only gotten juicier over night.
It wasn’t until my eyes collided with Bo’s unforgettably absorbing ones that I realized what I was so excited about, what my blood and my body had known even before my eyes could confirm it.
We stood facing each other, separated by tables and bodies, music and laughter, but we might’ve been the only two people in the world. My heart strained against my ribs as if someone had tied satin threads to it—threads that were tethered to Bo, threads that were insistently pulling me toward him.
I leaned back against the wall beside the door, pushing away from Bo as hard as I could, determined to resist. As I watched him, unable to tear my eyes away, one side of his mouth tipped up in a knowing grin and he took a step toward me.
Like a predator, he made his way through the crowd, stalking me with his eyes. With every step that brought him closer, my anticipation grew until it was almost unbearable, at fever pitch.
He didn’t stop until he stood only inches from me, his body so close our chests would touch if I inhaled deeply enough. I couldn’t take a deep breath, though. My lungs had seized and I couldn’t breathe at all.
Bo bent his head and whispered at my ear, “Breathe.”
And just like that, it seemed the spell was broken. On a whoosh, I let out the air I’d been holding and Bo leaned back to look at me.
“What are you doing to me?”
His brows pinched together, but he said nothing. I hadn’t intended to say that out loud; it was more of an internal musing, one to which I didn’t really expect an answer.
“Bo, are you ready?” It was a girl’s voice that called from behind him.
I looked over Bo’s shoulder and there stood Savannah. She grinned when she saw me peek up at her.
“Sorry to interrupt,” she chirped happily. “I didn’t see you there, Ridley.”
“You’re not interrupting,” I assured her.
When I looked back to Bo, one brow was quirked. Ignoring that my stomach was aflutter and that my blood pounded in my ears, I slipped out from around Bo.
“He’s all yours,” I said, steeling myself and heading for the cashier.
Without so much as a glance behind me, I placed my order, paid and moved to the other end of the counter to await my coffee. I could feel Bo’s eyes on me, but I refused to turn around.
I didn’t have to look to know when he left. I felt it, like the draining away of something vital. I ached to turn and follow him, but I didn’t. I waited for my coffee and then took it to my car where I waited for my pulse to return to normal.
When I finally managed to get my body under control, I drove to school and parked at the top of the lot. On the few occasions when I drove, I parked in that same spot. It was always available and it was always in the shade.
I walked slowly toward the building. I dreaded school more today than I had in…well, actually, more than I ever had. I knew it was just a matter of time until Trinity either exploded or executed some sort of vicious sneak attack. It hovered over me like a huge guillotine, its razor-sharp blade glinting in the morning sun. All Trinity had to do was pull the lever and thwack! I’d be headless.
Making my way quickly through the halls, trying my best to ignore all the stares, I saw a tight knot of people in the same general vicinity as my locker. My stomach curled in dismay.
I politely asked to be excused as I pushed my way through the masses to get to my locker. When I finally managed to wiggle my way through, I saw what was garnering all the attention, what they were all looking at.
Trinity had been hard at work during practice last night. She’d been defacing my locker. I knew without a doubt she was the responsible party and I’m sure everyone else knew that, too.
Taped to my locker were several photo-shopped pictures of me doing disgusting things with old men, other girls and farm animals. In between the pictures, written in black magic marker, were words like traitor and whore among many other, much more colorful slurs.
Unfortunately, though, that wasn’t the worst of it. An overpowering stench was emanating from my locker. Upon closer inspection, I realized that there were feces smeared all over the pictures and a big hunk of it was stuck to the lock.
But there was something else. Beneath that smell was something that had an even more rancid odor than the crap all over the door. I feared that it was coming from inside.
I wondered if Trinity might have managed to get into my locker and put something nasty in there, something dead. It sure smelled that way, and it sure sounded like something she’d do. In addition to being curious just like everyone else, I was also a little concerned about my belongings. I hated to leave them in there with the funk, but there was no way I was touching my locker without a HazMat suit. If there was road kill ‘possum in there, it would just have to wait.
Turning on my heel, I went straight to Home Room. I could do without books for one day. I’d just explain what happened to the teachers so they’d not penalize me for showing up without them and without my homework. I could take my duffel back to the car after first period so that I wouldn’t have to lug it around with me all day.
No biggee, I told myself, but even so, I could feel tears of humiliation stinging my eyes. I’d known Trinity was vile, but I hadn’t expected something like this. I had assumed it would be something much more…social, her revenge. And I still suspected that it would be. I could only assume that she was biding her time, which didn’t bode well for me. That probably meant that it was going to be epic. I just wished she’d just get it over with so I could move on in peace. Waiting was the worst part.