An Imperfect Circle

by R. J. Sable

  “Me and Matt will go help your mum with the tea and biscuits,” Bear announces, standing up.

  Matt gives me a look which roughly translates to “why me?” so I stick my tongue out at him. My room is my sanctuary, I’m not sure I can handle having two new people in there at once.

  “It’s only fair, you’ve seen mine,” Karl smirks slightly once we’re alone in the lounge.

  “This isn’t quid pro quo. It’s not I’ll show you mine if you show me yours,” I grumble even as I lead him up the stairs.

  “So you like Bear?” He asks as we reach the landing.

  “He’s awesome,” I nod sincerely. It bothers me more than I can explain that Karl seems not to get that.

  He just nods contemplatively as I open the door and I know he’s thinking deeply because he’s got that little crinkle between his brows. It disappears when I turn the light switch on and his eyes scan the room methodically, resting on every single thing of significance.

  It’s nothing like the polite but curious perusal of Becky Blossom. This is a full on invasion of privacy. I feel like every detail he’s raking over is being catalogued and registered in his mind.

  “You have a thing for circles,” he comments.

  It feels like the least significant thing he could have picked up on so I just shrug and nod.

  “All your work?” He prompts, gesturing to the corner pieces so I nod again.

  He sits down on my bed, swinging his body round so he can put his feet up and cross them. It’s kind of rude so I smack at his feet but he just grins and keeps them here.

  “You have three locks on your door,” he prompts, staring at the door with a curious fascination.

  “You’re doing the pointing out the obvious thing again,” I sigh with exasperation.

  He just grins, crosses his arms under his head, and stares up at the ceiling. His t-shirt pulls up with the movement and exposes his stomach and the band of his boxers. The man either needs to buy longer t-shirts or bigger trousers. I feel like I see that bit of him far too often.

  It’s not that I’m looking at it on purpose. I’m not.

  He just seems to get it out a lot.

  “Why are you acting all macho aggressive with Bear?” I prompt because I need to stop looking at that little strip of skin.

  He cocks his head at me and bites down on his lip in contemplation. “You want me to answer that honestly or within the confines of the rules?”

  I swallow. “Can’t you do both?”

  He frowns and shuffles to the side slightly so I lie down next to him on the bed and join him in staring at the ceiling.

  “I don’t know him so I don’t know if I can trust him with you.”

  “Why would you need to know that?” I frown.

  “Because he’s sleeping here,” he answers seriously and I see him look at the locks on my door.

  I suddenly realise where he’s going with this and it makes my stomach turn at the same time it makes my heart flutter slightly. He’s worried about me being in a house with a man after what happened five years ago.

  I’m not his responsibility but part of me sort of likes that he cares enough to have thought about it. Especially since this friendship is quite new for all intents and purposes.

  He doesn’t need to know that I like it though.

  “I’m not a little girl any more, Karl. I don’t need protecting,” I inform him icily.

  “Believe me, I know,” Karl answers, propping himself up on one elbow to look down at me. “But just because you don’t need it, doesn’t mean I don’t want to.”

  “Karl-” I start, ready to politely tell him to shove his protection up his chute but he cuts me off.

  “Just tell me this guy doesn’t make you uncomfortable.”

  “He doesn’t, Karl,” I reply softly because his tone is urgent and I can see how much he needed to hear that. “Bear is amazing. He’s helped me and my mum in so many ways and he’s never once made me feel uncomfortable. He’s never even touched me, I only hugged him for the first time last week.”

  “Really?” Karl prompts, his shoulders relaxing somewhat.

  I nod and close my eyes, feeling the mattress dip as he lays back down again.

  “Yeah.”

  “You’ve hugged me twice now,” I hear him smirk.

  “Are we keeping count?”

  “We are.”

  “Then I want a Wagon Wheel for every hug.”

  “So I can just give you a Wagon Wheel whenever I want a hug?” He asks with a hint of humour.

  I seriously think it over for a while. It would be a cushy deal if it wasn’t for those pesky morals that tell me it sounds kind of like selling myself.

  “No,” I smirk. “You’d probably take advantage.”

  “I was already making plans to bulk buy,” he jokes. Or at least I think he’s joking.

  “I’m not usually a big hugger,” I shrug.

  “You hug Becky all the time,” Karl sounds surprised.

  “She’s slowly converting me,” I shrug.

  “Did you hate hugging me then?” He prompts with genuine curiosity.

  “I didn’t hate it,” I admit. He doesn’t need to know that I quite enjoyed it.

  “Wow. I’m flattered,” he says sarcastically.

  “So you should be,” I deadpan.

  I hear mum calling us because we seem to have missed tea and biscuits. Strangely, I don’t even mind that I’ve missed out on a Wagon Wheel because I’m happy that it was okay having Karl in my room and lying on the bed with him to talk. Don’t get me wrong, there was a good thirty centimetres between us but it was still a huge thing for me.

  I don’t have men in my bed.

  “The friendship is working out okay then?” Bear prompts once they’ve all left.

  “I think so,” I nod happily. “I’m sorry he was rude to you.”

  “Never apologise for somebody else’s actions, glowbug. And he wasn’t rude, he was cautious of me on your behalf. I can’t fault him for that.”

  I look down at the floor because I feel bad that Karl thought Bear was like that.

  “He doesn’t know me from Adam, glowbug. I’m not offended. I’m just happy you have another friend that cares about you. You deserve good friends.”

  “Is that why you told me to show him my room?” I twig, remembering the way Karl seemed placated when he saw the locks on my door.

  Bear nods. “I wanted him to know that you were safe here.”

  I smile because I love how Bear always seems to know the right thing to do and say in awkward situations. I’m dying to know what he thinks of Matt and Karl but I won’t ask because I know he won’t tell me until he’s spent enough time with them to form a thorough opinion.

  It’s important to me that Bear likes them.

  Chapter 20

  “They got to meet Bear?” Becky pouts as I tell her about dinner at the Carters’ house the following Monday.

  “Yeah but I got to meet his little sister so I think I win,” I grin.

  She maintains her pout and I grin and squeeze her hand. “I want you to meet him too. He’s dying to meet you.” It’s true and Becky knows how important Bear is to me. I think she’s intrigued by all the things I’ve told her about him. I love Becky’s curious mind and I know he’ll love her because you can’t not love the wonderful powerpuff girl that she is.

  “Awesome sauce,” she squeaks with a smile but then her face turns more serious. “How’s it working out, being friends with him?”

  “Good, I think,” I smile. “There are occasional weird moments and I want to cause him bodily harm far more often than can be normal but it’s working for us.”

  “Bodily harm?” She looks slightly startled.

  “She beats me!” Karl shouts out. He’s clearly been eavesdropping from the other side of the common room.

  He and Matt make their way over to us and I roll my eyes at him because me and Becky are trying to get our maths homework done and he knows it
.

  We won’t get anything done if they come over here. Not because they’ll mess it up but because their fan club will undoubtedly follow.

  “I have bruises and everything,” he insists, putting on his most mortified facial expression. I can see the teasing look in his eye but Becky still looks kind of shocked.

  “Bruises?” Matt grins. “Demongirl gave you bruises?”

  “Matt, I swear to God, you keep calling me that, I’m going to tell Andrew every time you swear.”

  “Hello!” Karl interjects. “We were talking about me and my poor, battered body.”

  I scoff and raise an eyebrow at him because I know haven’t really hurt him. He spars with his brothers all the time. The occasional light slap and elbowing in the ribs from me isn’t going to hurt him.

  “Look!” He insists, pulling his t-shirt up to show me his ribs.

  I’m not looking. I’m not. I definitely can’t see that stupid strip that I don’t like at all with the little trail of hair that marks the joining of his abs. If I was looking, I’d be able to see the ginormous bruise that mars the whole right side of his ribs.

  “Oh my god!” Stacey gushes, rushing to Karl’s side. She places her hand tenderly over the bruised skin.

  I’m only scowling because she touched him without permission. His grin widens when he sees my scowl and he lets her keep her hand there for a second longer before pulling his shirt down again.

  “Goth girl did that?” Stacey shrieks, turning round to accost me.

  I just keep my face neutral because there’s absolutely no way I caused that bruise and by the looks on Matt and Karl’s faces, they know it too.

  “She’s violent,” Matt nods seriously.

  “I’d keep out of her way,” Karl agrees.

  I just smirk because I wouldn’t mind if Stacey kept out of my way. Forever.

  “Oh my God, you’re such a bitch, Ellie,” Annie joins her sour-faced groupie in judging me.

  I scowl because I’m not about to sit here and be insulted like that when I haven’t done anything wrong.

  “You’ve pissed her off now, Annie,” Matt laughs. “Watch your back.”

  Annie laughs nervously but she looks genuinely concerned and she probably should be because I’m not the sort to standby whilst somebody badmouths me.

  Luckily for her, Karl doesn’t seem to be in the mood for his female fans and scowls as he sits next to me. His sullen disposition penetrates the air and it seems to ward them off.

  “How’d you really get that?” I ask him because it did look nasty. Not that I was looking.

  “I’m not telling you because you’ll laugh at me,” he pouts but it doesn’t have the sympathy-drawing affect he’s after. Instead, it just draws attention to his lips. I find myself remembering our kisses. It was so long ago it almost feels like I imagined it but, with him so close to me, I can almost remember the way they felt. Almost. The memory is just out of reach.

  “She laughs at you anyway, mate,” Matt chuckles.

  “True,” Karl sighs wistfully but it quickly turns into a grin as he leans back in his chair and puts his arm on the back of mine.

  Despite the fact that I’m covered in what must be a kilogram of moisturising cream, as his arm touches the bare skin at the top of my back, we both jolt slightly with a small shock.

  We need to fire that science teacher. From a cannon.

  “Static,” I mumble.

  “Static,” he agrees with a chuckle, rudely leaving his arm on my chair.

  Whilst we’re busy electrocuting each other, Rob and Ian have joined us and are chatting happily with Matt and Becky. Becky is sat on Rob’s lap and looks extremely uncomfortable so I make a mental note to keep an eye on her.

  “It was the swing set,” Karl explains, drawing my attention away from Rob and Blossom because his breath is almost in my ear.

  “What?” I frown.

  “The bruises,” he rolls his eyes at me for not paying attention.

  “You got them from the swing set?” I prompt because I can’t imagine how he could possibly swing fast enough to bruise himself like that.

  “Sort of,” he smirks. “I was trying to walk over the top of it.”

  “What? Why?” I castigate him lightly because that sounds like a stupid thing to do.

  He sighs although I can see the corner of his lip pulling up slightly so I don’t think he’s all that humiliated by it. “Jake and Jamie didn’t trust my carpentry skills.”

  “What?” I laugh.

  “They were convinced it would fall apart if they used it.”

  I stifle a laugh because he looks sort of offended by the notion that he wouldn’t be awesome at it. “So you decided to walk over the top of it?”

  He nods grumpily.

  “And?”

  “And I fell off,” he sighs, looking up at Ian who’s obviously been listening and is smirking with amusement.

  “So, just so I have this right,” I pause to make sure he’s paying attention. “To prove to your brother and sister that it worked, you decided to walk across the top of it?”

  He nods cautiously like he can tell I’m about to mock him.

  “Did it not occur to you just to swing on it?”

  He opens his mouth to answer and then closes it again. He obviously didn’t think of that.

  Ian guffaws with laughter and clasps his stomach as the realisation sinks in. Karl does not look happy.

  “You didn’t think of that, did you?” I grin.

  He purses his lips and doesn’t answer. It occurs to me that he might think I’m calling him stupid again and I don’t want that. I nudge him playfully with my shoulder, meaning I’m basically nestled in his armpit.

  “It was sweet, though,” I reassure him with a slight smirk.

  “Falling off was sweet?” He raises a sulky eyebrow in my direction, tucking me further into him and holding my other shoulder with his large, warm hand. I like that I can feel callouses on his palm. I know that they’re from working with wood and that seems soothing somehow.

  “No,” I reassure him. “The fact that you were willing to risk hurting yourself just to make Jake and Jamie feel safe was sweet.”

  “They’re my family,” he shrugs and I know he didn’t even think twice about it. For all his faults, I know he’d do anything for his family.

  “Did they at least use the swing set after you almost broke yourself demonstrating the awesome craftsmanship?” I grin.

  “They did,” he nods with a smug smile.

  His hand is still on my shoulder and I shiver as he gently moves one finger and it tickles. He smirks slightly but I’m not sure if it’s from noticing my reaction or because Ian just pointed out how uncomfortable Becky looks.

  He’s right. She still doesn’t look happy.

  “I need the loo!” I announce, standing up because Becky needs rescuing and I need Karl to stop tickling my arm before I break his fingers and get expelled. Again.

  I shoot Blossom the classic look to let her know I need her to come with me and she looks beyond relieved for the excuse to get off of Rob’s lap.

  “Thank you!” She whispers as she follows me out the room.

  “You didn’t look happy. Has Rob done something?”

  “What? No!” She looks horrified at the implication. “Of course not.” Her shoulders sag as we enter the bathroom and I check the stalls quickly to make sure we’re alone.

  “So why did you look so uncomfortable.”

  “I don’t want to sit on his lap,” she admits as she chews on her lip.

  “Then don’t,” I shrug. Seems simple to me.

  “But he seemed really offended when I said no before.”

  “He pressured you into it?” I scowl, jumping on this titbit.

  “No, not really,” she shakes her head adamantly. “I just want him to be happy but I’m so scared I’ll crush him or hurt him and he’ll be too worried about offending me to say something and then I’ll flatten his legs and he won�
��t be able to play rugby any more and then he’ll hate me and we’ll have to break up and-”

  I cut her off by raising my hand because that was an epic ramble even for Becky Blossom.

  “You seriously don’t want to sit on his lap because you’re worried about crushing him?” I ask her incredulously.

  She blushes a deep shade of red and nods dolefully.

  “Becky,” I chuckle. “Trust me, that boy was not in pain.”

  We’ve already established that we weigh roughly the same and Rob is a rugby player for goodness sake. His thighs could easily bear the weight of a sumo wrestler. I’m sure they’re fine with a curvy powerpuff girl.

  “Is that the only reason you were uncomfortable?” I prompt.

  She nods and looks sort of like she might cry so I wrap my arms around her and hug her tightly, going as far as to actually rub her back.

  Seriously, I’m a hug pro now.

  “Right, come with me,” I grin at her once we break the hug. I march her back to the common room with her hand held in mine and drag her back to the table where she was sitting.

  “Remember we weigh the same, okay?” I whisper to her with a wink, waiting until she nods to follow through with my plan.

  I stroll up to Karl and he cuts off his conversation with Annie and Stacey as he sees me approach.

  I kind of like that he did that.

  “I need to borrow you,” I tell him.

  “Nice manners, Elise,” Karl grins, even as he’s getting up to come with me.

  I ignore the glares the girls give me and smile to myself because I know they hate that Karl and me have become friends. Again.

  “Thank you,” I answer back with a healthy dose of sarcasm.

  “Why do you need to borrow me?” He grins back.

  “Physics demonstration.”

  “I don’t take physics,” he frowns in confusion.

  “It’s okay,” I smirk back. “I just need you for the muscle.”

  He raises his eyebrow at me but he still follows. I lead him to the side of the common room where Becky is hovering and come to a stop.

  Naturally, Matt has followed, and since Becky is here, Rob and Ian are already making their way towards us.

  “You’re strong, right?” I prompt because I know he likes his ego stroked, even if he’s usually the one stroking it.