by Yalu Taylors
“Sorry.” I step back and a pair of strong arms wind around my waist. I tense up, ready to fight.
“Knew you'd fall for us but it's not meant to be literally.” Zack's voice in my ear has me relaxing a little. At least it’s not a complete stranger.
“Ha, ha.” I try to wrench myself free, but he tightens his hold. Truthfully, I like the feel of his arms around me, he makes me feel safe. Weird huh?
“You smell like strawberries.”
“Zack let her go, you're going to scare her off.” Zayne scolds as he comes through the door. Zack releases me, and I step passed Hunter. What's before me, is the last thing you'd expect out the back of a car repair shop. The garden oasis is amazing. Trees in full bloom, surround an oval shaped wooden gazebo.
Just behind the gazebo is a small pond with a cute little dark wood bridge and stone path. The house it leads to is the back of a massive two-story brick and tile. I think about our location for a moment and realize the front of the house would be on the same street Mariah lives on. I breathe in the apple blossoms and sigh contentedly.
“This place is absolutely magical.” I look at Hunter and the twins, they are all smiling proudly.
“Grubs up.” Startled by the shout I turn to face the house again. Braydon is hanging his head out the first-floor window near the back door. Zayne grabs my left hand and gently tugs me towards the house. Zack rushes up to my right and copies his twin, while Hunter follows along behind. I can feel Hunter's eyes on my back, having him behind me is starting to make me nervous. I try to tug my hands from theirs, but the twins don’t want to let go. “Shortcake, what's wrong?” I stop walking and look at Zack.
“Well we can start with you two letting my hands go and never using that nickname again or Hunter can just walk in front of me and I'll pretend you didn't just nickname me or grab my hands so boldly.”
“What's wrong with shortcake?” Zack pouts and while I find the look adorable I can’t let that nickname, or the hand-holding stand.
“Shortcake? Really Z? Why the hell would you call her that?” Hunter asks as he speeds up to walk beside us. “No short girl ever wants to be reminded they are so short.” I can hear the amusement in Hunter's voice.
“I am not short!” I try to put my hands on my hips, but the twins still have hold of them. Which results in a rather humorous pose. Hunter's rumbling laugh draws my eyes to his broad shoulders. I'm not sure if it's because of his laugh or the attraction I'm feeling but my anger melts away. I tug free of the twins and launch myself at Hunter, trying to keep the amusement from my face. I had every intention of tackling him to the ground, but I only made it as far as slamming my shoulder into his chest.
Hunter scoops me up and flings me over his shoulder, the blood rushing to my head as I dangle there, unable to wriggle free. Okay so I don’t try very hard. “It's okay you're not short. you've just got duck syndrome. Your cute little ass is too close to the ground.” The twin burst out laughing. Their similar laughs sounding like a shiver inducing echo.
“Put me down.” I place my hands on his hips to give myself leverage, to pull my head and torso up. Trying to ignore his solid muscles is hard but I get a quick flash of a vision and smile to myself. This'll be fun.
“Ooh, she's flexible.” Zack groans as I flip myself up and out of Hunter's hold. His height gives me enough room to somersault onto the ground without hurting myself. Hunter spins around shock clear on his face. “How'd you do that?”
“It's a secret.” I wink and begin walking across the little bridge. I’m not sure why I continue walking towards the house. I think about that little dilemma for a moment. Hmm I guess I’m just curious, it has absolutely nothing to do with them all being so handsome, nope not at all.
Braydon blocks the doorway with his hands on his hips. “What took you lot so long? It's only a two-minute walk.” Braydon tries for a stern face but the laughter in his eyes ruins the effect.
“Tessa wanted to show off.” Hunter winks at the twins. “It's all her fault.”
“Hey, don't blame me, you two called me short. It's your fault.” I point at Hunter and Zack. Braydon rounds on them. “Besides I didn’t even want to be here in the first place.”
“You teased her about her height? You two have dishes duty and you owe her an apology. It's not her fault she's so tiny.” His laughter cuts short as my fist collides with his stomach.
Fuck that hurt. Shaking my hand out I huff. “I'm not tiny. I'm five three and three quarters.”
Zayne tries to come to my rescue. “It's all right Babe, good things come in small packages.”
“I'm not small, I'm normal. You boys are just freakishly tall.” I poke my tongue out at them, my tongue piercing flashing.
“Oh God! Babe, don't do that.” Zayne groans. “It's too tempting.” My face flushes scarlet. I turn to go back to my car, but the twins grab my arms and drag me inside their house. Bloody pushy guys.
The first thing I notice is the beautiful wooden countertops. The kitchen is huge, even with the four guys standing in it. The twins let me go and Zayne sits down on one of the five stools at the breakfast bar and motions for me to join him. Feeling a little nervous I sit next to him and wring my hands in my lap. Braydon places a plate of ham and salad sandwiches in front of me. Then does the same for each of the guys.
Huh? Why are they feeding me? I am a little hungry, but should I really be sitting here with these guys? Couldn’t really hurt to have a meal with them, could it? Giving in I grab the first sandwich and take a bite. We eat in silence, Hunter the first to finish, gets up and props himself against the bar opposite me. I watch him from beneath my lashes. His cheeky grin gave him away long before he reached his hand in to steal one of my sandwiches. I swat his hand and tug my plate closer, I may not have wanted to be here but there is no way I would allow someone to steal food off my plate.
Zayne slaps Hunter when he tries the same with his food. I try not to laugh as Zack sneaks the last sandwich off Zayne’s plate while he’s busy fending off Hunter. Remembering Braydon’s comment about Hunter and Zack on dishes duty, I quickly finish eating and push the now empty plate over to Hunter.
My phone buzzes in my pocket, I'm tempted to ignore it as the only other person that has my number is my mum, but I don’t want to get into trouble. I excuse myself and answer the call.
“Where are you? You were supposed to be home an hour ago.” I pull the phone away from my ear but she's screaming so loud I can still hear her. “You get your ass home right now young lady. You have work to do.”
I glare at the phone for a moment then say to the guys. “Sorry boys but I have to go.” I’m of mixed feelings as I say those words, on one hand I’m glad I have an excuse to get away from them but on the other, I was just starting to enjoy myself around them. Wow I’m so weird.
“I'll give you a ride home and pick you up for school in the morning. We'll fix your car tonight and bring it to school tomorrow.” Braydon says kindly. I don't really have much of a choice, especially since they are fixing it for free. I smile graciously and agree.
Chapter 3
It wasn't a very long drive, Braden played music so there was no need for small talk. I think he understood that I didn’t want to talk about what awaited me at home. I open the front door after politely waving goodbye to Brayden, my mother started yelling.
“Who the hell was that that dropped you off? Where's your car?”
I glare at her, she doesn't even look at my face. “My car is in the shop getting repaired and that was one of the guys who is doing the repairs.” I walk away as she replies.
“I don't have time for this. I’m late for my book club.”
Hurrying up the stairs I head straight to my room. I lean against the back of my door, my eyes closed. The front door slams with a bang as my mother leaves.
“Thought she'd never leave.” Peter's deep voice scares me, my eyes flying open. He's right in front of me, barely an inch from my face. Ugh not this again.
“Get the fuck out of my room.” I shove him hard in the chest, but his solid body doesn't move. I cringe away as he starts to speak.
“Now, now dear ‘cousin,’ no need for all this hostility.” He slams his hands against the door, caging me in. His breath reeks of alcohol and I know I need to get away from him before he does something bad.
“Get the fuck out of my face.” I screech, my voice becoming higher pitched by the second. Panic grips me as I watch the emotions cross his features. Anger, hurt, anger, lust.
I lift my knee intending to clock him in the nuts but before I can bring it up, he presses his body hard against mine. His lips slam onto mine so hard I taste blood. Tears roll down my face from the pain. I’m too scared to scream because his tongue slides over the outside of my lips, demanding entrance. I Slap him as hard as I can, and Peter pulls his head back and looks me in the eyes. Anger now overriding his lust. His fist slams into my face, momentarily blinding me with pain.
“Now look what you made me do. You shouldn’t have hit me. You know better than to make me angry.” He steps back giving me the chance to escape. I run to my bathroom and slam the door, flicking the lock into place. I hear him banging on the outside of the bathroom door. “You’ll be begging for me one of these days.” His voice sounds regretful but still a little angry.
I’m not sure how long I sat with my back against the door but eventually my tears dry up and I climb to my feet. I run the shower water as hot as I can stand it and scrub my skin raw. I unlock the door and check the room to make sure Peter has left and I feel relieved when I notice he is nowhere in sight. Usually, he just goes through my stuff, or teases me about being all alone or adopted but this is the first time he has ever physically hurt me. Just thinking about it makes my cheek throb. I run to my bedroom door and lock it, preventing him from getting in again. I curl up on my bed and cry myself to sleep.
I stare at my reflection in the mirror, my eyes tearing up. It’s times like these that I wish I wore makeup. My left eye is swollen and black, my bottom lip split just off center. I style my hair to hide most of my face and finish getting ready for school. I rush out the door and get halfway to the carport before I remember that Hunter, Braydon, Zack, and Zayne have my car. I pull my phone from my jeans pocket and quickly send a text to Braydon’s number. He responds in seconds letting me know he is on his way.
Too scared to return to the house, I sit on the edge of the driveway and wait. Braydon pulls up a couple minutes later and I climb into the passenger seat of his black Escalade.
“Good morning Tessie.” Being careful not to let my face show, I grunt a good morning in reply. The drive to school feels like it takes forever but when we pull up into the parking spot next to my Shelby, I wish the drive had taken longer. Zayne flings my door open and pulls me into a huge hug. He lets go and tucks my hair behind my ear, revealing my battered face.
“What the fuck?” Zayne and Zack yell at the same time.
“Who the fuck put their hands on you?” Hunter growls, his whole body visibly shaking with anger. I flinch as Zayne touches my cheek. Braydon rounds the car and gets right in my face.
“Explain! Now!” His grip on my arms is gentle but there’s evident anger in his voice.
“It’s none of your business.” I lift my chin, putting on a don’t fuck with me face but it falls short when my lip splits open again.
“Yes, it is! Now tell us who did this.” Hunter demands, his gruff voice getting louder by the second. They clearly have no intention of dropping the subject, so I shrug my shoulders and mumble Peter’s name. “Now say it louder so we can hear you Tessandra.” I glare at Hunter as Zack dabs a tissue against my bleeding lip.
“Peter.” I snarl the name with as much contempt as I can muster. My stomach recoiling at the thought of having to explain any further. To my utter astonishment, the guys don’t wait for an explanation, they all take off towards the entrance to the school. I try to run after them, but my short legs are no match for their long strides.
By the time I catch up to them they are in the hallway near the cafeteria. Hunter has Peter up against a locker. I can’t hear what he says but Peter’s face is deathly pale. His eyes flicker to mine as I approach, and he sneers at me. Braydon says something to Hunter which has him looking away from Peter. Peter mouths the words, “You’re dead.” I step back putting some distance between me and the guys just as Mr. James rounds the corner.
Hunter drops Peter so quickly he stumbles and falls on his ass. Zayne and Zack jump in front of Mr. James and start asking him questions about our assignment. Braydon leans down into Peter’s personal space and says something that has Peter shaking his head hurriedly. Hunter stalks over to me and yanks me into his arms, he seems to need my comfort right now, so even though I barely know him, and I hate PDA’s, we stand there like that until the bell rings.
Zack speaks quietly into Hunter’s ear and Hunter reluctantly lets me go. He goes to walk away but stops and turns back to me, tugging me in for another embrace, brushing a wayward curl behind my ear, he cradles my bruised face gently in his palm. His other hand smoothes the length of my hair as he places a quick kiss on my temple before hurrying off to class.
Zack grasps my hand in his and practically drags me to English class. I stop suddenly at the door when I see Peter sitting in my usual seat. Zack mumbles under his breath and leads me over to the opposite side of the room positioning himself so I’m out of Peter’s view.
Mr. Berry shuffles into the room with his arms loaded with papers. His rumpled suit and messy grey hair making him look older than His sixty something age. He dumps the pile on his desk, a few sheets fluttering quietly to the floor and turns to face the class.
“This term we’ll be working on famous literature. Each pair will have to do a spoken presentation comparing a historical piece to a modern take. I’ve already decided who will partner with whom, so don’t bother arguing about it.” He calls out several people’s names pairing them together.
He gets down to the last four names and my eyes begin to water. Peter, Zack, Kelly, and I are the last four remaining. I cross my fingers praying he doesn’t pair me with Peter.
“Kelly and Peter. Zack and Tessandra. If I didn’t call your name, then you’re in the wrong bloody class.” The room fills with snickers as Mr. Berry sits back down behind his desk.
“One person from each pair come collect the assignment packet from my desk.” His gnarly old hand pats the huge pile he brought in at the start of class, crumpling the top sheet.
I go to stand but Zack puts his hand on my knee. He nods his head towards Peter who has made his way to the front of the classroom. Settling back into my seat as Zack goes to collect our papers. Before he can make it back, Peter passes my desk and drops a note in front of me. He glares then returns to his own desk. I open the note and quickly read it.
Keep your mouth shut or bruises will be the least of your problems.
I scrunch the note and toss it under the desk in front of me. I'm not going to let him intimidate me. Zack returns, and we argue quietly over whether to do Romeo and Juliet or a midsummer night’s dream. We settle on Romeo and Juliet but decide to make our focal point the differences between the movie and Shakespeare's plays and we start to work on our assignment.
The bell rings and Zack grabs my bag and my hand, we walk out of class together. As we are heading to history class, Mariah shoulder barges me, fake coughing the word slut. I should have known things could get worse, but I just didn't see it coming. Ironic considering, I can see flashes of the future. It's always the same though, I never see my own fate though, only those around me. Zayne meets us at the door to the classroom and Zack hands over my bag. He lightly kisses my cheek before heading off to his own class. It’s weird but their antics are starting to grow on me.
Zayne leads me over to the desk next to Shaun. Shaun smiles as he looks up, but it falls from his face fast. “What the fuck happened to you?” Shaun’s usually deep soft voice sounds like
the growling of a wolf.
I reply with a simple nothing, but Zayne cuts in with the truth. “Peter hit her after she turned him down.” I glare at Zayne and huff as I turn to face the front of the class. Shaun swears under his breath for a few moments then Zayne seeing my discomfort, changes the subject. Zayne and Shaun talk football for a while so I tune them out. Mrs. Long walks into the classroom, her red-brown curls bouncing with each step.
Today she’s wearing a plain black floor length dress and black pumps. She drones on about some old war that could’ve had a different outcome if it had have happened a decade later. Blah blah. I tune her out too, I’ve read the text book, so I don’t need to pay attention to anything she says.
I flip my notebook open and begin to draw. I’m not really paying attention to anyone around me until Zayne leans his head on my shoulder and whispers.
“Babe, don’t you think you should be drawing me instead of Hunter?” His words bring me out of my drawing trance and I glance down at the page.
I’ve drawn Hunter standing on the balcony at the guys' place. He’s leaning on the railing with something in his hands. The details are blurry, almost like I’m seeing it through tears or the rain. I look up at the clock and see we only have a couple minutes until the bell for lunch. I quickly shut the book and start gathering my things.
Zayne and I walk out to my car, I inspect the side where the dent was but it’s so well repaired that I can’t even tell it had ever happened. I wait until all the guys arrive before saying thank you. They all reply with varying versions of you’re welcome. Hunter sits in behind my steering wheel and starts the car, it sounds heaps better than it did yesterday. He motions for me to come closer and when I get there he pulls me down onto his lap. I grip the door and pull myself back up. “What the hell do you think you are doing?”