by Kelly Oram
I looked down at where he was touching me, warning him to let go, but instead of releasing me he slid his grip to my hand. I tried to pull away but he was too quick. “You know I’m only doing this show tonight for you, Legs.” He brought my hand to his lips. “I’d better see that pretty little face of yours smiling up at me when I sing.”
“Fine, whatever,” I grumbled, snatching my hand free. It was a lie of course. I was not going to go be his little groupie in the front row.
“Good.”
He wasn’t leaving. When I questioned him about that he said to Cara, “You look like you could use a break.”
Startled, Cara glanced back and forth between Kyle and me and shook her head. “V would kill me.”
“I just abandoned Shane in the pizza line. He’s probably feeling pretty lonely right now.”
Cara’s eyes grew wide.
“Do not ditch me!” I hissed.
“Sorry, V, the boy fights dirty. Ten minutes, I promise!”
“Traitor!” I called out as she left me alone with Kyle.
She blew me a kiss. “I’ll bring you back a slice of pizza.”
When I turned around, Kyle had wandered behind my booth and was sitting in my chair like he owned the place.
“That’s my seat.”
Kyle patted his lap. “I’m not stopping you from sitting in it.”
I rolled my eyes and sat down on Cara’s chair. “Cheesy lines like that will get you exactly nowhere with me, but, by all means, keep them coming. You’re so much easier to ignore when you’re being an idiot.”
“That was not me being an idiot. That was me being charming.”
“Awesome. That means this little game you’re trying to play will be a piece of cake for me.”
Kyle shook his head. “Admit it, you find me at least a little charming.”
“I used to think you were charming,” I admitted.
“Used to?”
“Back when you went to Huntington.” Kyle was so surprised by this that for once he didn’t have a sarcastic comeback. “I was a freshman when you were a senior,” I explained. “I remember you.”
“Really? I don’t remember you.”
“You wouldn’t.” I laughed. “I didn’t grow out of that gawky adolescent stage until sophomore year. When we were at school together I was a lot shorter, with a lot less highlights and a mouthful of braces.”
Kyle shuddered. “No wonder. Sounds like I blocked you from memory on purpose.”
I surprised us both when I laughed along with him.
“Did we ever meet?” Kyle asked curiously.
“Not technically. You held a door open for me once when I had my hands full.”
“How chivalrous of me.”
“It was. You saw me carrying a stack of books so you jumped ahead of me, pulled open the door and said, ‘After you,’ with a big, sweeping bow.”
“You make it sound like I was a dork.”
“Are you kidding? I swooned for a year after that.”
“Seriously? That made you weak in the knees? If that’s all it takes, then why are we still sitting here? Let’s go find a door already.”
I laughed again and then cursed myself for it. Why was he so easy to talk to? “Back then you were charming and considerate.”
“And what am I now?” Kyle asked. He still had that curious tone.
I shrugged. “Arrogant and slutty.”
I thought Kyle would be offended, but he burst out laughing. “Okay, I’ll grant you that. But I’m also still charming and considerate.”
“You are not charming.”
“Say that without smiling.”
I tried to wipe the smile from my face but was unsuccessful. “Fine. You have your moments. Rarely. But considerate? That’s a stretch.”
“I’m playing an entire show tonight for charity.”
“Please!” I laughed. “You have ulterior motives.”
“Okay, you’re right. Agreeing to play tonight was selfish, but I fixed the leak in the sprinkler system for my Grammy last week because Pops is too old to be digging in the dirt. You have to admit that’s considerate.” He gave me a hopeful look. “And a little bit sexy.”
An image of Kyle, shirt off, dirty and sweaty, manhandling a shovel, all to help his Grammy and Pops entered my head. It was considerate. And a lot sexy.
“You’re smiling again,” Kyle said, which, to my everlasting annoyance, only made my grin stretch wider.
“Fine,” I relented. “You’re, like, two percent charming and considerate, ninety-eight percent arrogant and slutty.”
“That means you like me at least two percent.”
“Not the best odds, Kyle.”
“You’ll be in love with me in a week.”
I rolled my eyes.
“Okay, my turn,” Kyle said. “Do you know what you are?”
“A virgin?” I guessed dryly.
Kyle laughed. “That too, but I was going to say stubborn and blunt. Which, in your case, I find extremely sexy.”
One of Kyle’s hands was suddenly resting on my thigh while the other was sweeping my bangs out of my eyes. “Come out with me after the show.”
Kyle’s body was doing that gravitational pull thing again. I hopped up out of my seat, fighting a wave of chills and started straightening a stack of pamphlets. “Can’t, sorry.” I tried to sound indifferent to the offer. “I have to stay until the end of the festival and then I’m on cleanup duty.”
I felt a finger run down the length of my spine, and then Kyle’s breath was on my neck. I jumped when I felt his lips brush over my skin. “Let’s go out after that, then,” he said in a low voice.
I whirled on him, but he didn’t back up. He planted his hands on either side of the booth, trapping me against it. I had to lean so far back to keep his lips off me that I nearly lost my footing.
I scrambled to break up the moment because the look in Kyle’s eyes was doing funny things to my insides. My hand clenched around a bracelet and I thrust it in his face. It was a simple black leather strap with a tiny A dangling from it. Perfect. “Here, why don’t you have this, Kyle? No donation necessary. Trust me, you need it.”
Kyle took the bracelet and examined it for a moment while still somehow managing to keep me pinned against the counter. “Cute,” he said then traced the necklace I was wearing. “But I want this one.”
I knew he was referring to my virginity, and not the actual necklace, but I couldn’t help the way I clutched it. “Okay, Kyle.” I gulped. “This is fun and all, but playtime’s over. I think you need to back up.”
“And I think you want to kiss me.”
I tried to hide the fact that my pulse had skyrocketed. I hated how my body wanted things my mind didn’t. I hated how even my brain was starting to forget what it wanted. I prayed he couldn’t read the truth in my face. “That’s because you’re arrogant,” I said.
Kyle’s lips tugged up into a half smile. “Don’t forget slutty.”
As if the title made it okay, he moved his hands from the countertop to my hips. I gasped when one of his hands grazed my butt and then dipped into the back pocket of my jeans. I smacked his chest hard and shoved him again until he backed up.
“Relax, Virgin Val.” He laughed and waved my phone in my face. He’d pulled it out of my pocket.
I hit him again for good measure. “You, jerk!”
Kyle ignored me and programmed his number into my cell phone. “Call me when you’re done tonight.”
“Ha! I don’t think so.”
“Okay, I’ll call you then.” He used my phone to call himself, effectively stealing my phone number.
“I won’t answer it.”
“Smile pretty,” he said and took my picture with his phone.
I’m sure the look on my face that would now come up in Kyle’s phone whenever I called—not that I was ever going to call him—was neither a smile nor pretty.
“Hey guys.” Cara was back now with Shane, and they were bot
h watching us.
“I see what you mean,” Shane said to Cara.
I didn’t even want to know.
“How’s it going over here?” Cara asked, giggling.
“Great,” Kyle said. “Val and I have a hot date tonight.”
“Not, hardly. He practically just molested me!”
Kyle scoffed.
“It might be wise for you to leave now, Romeo,” Cara said, holding me back like she was afraid I was going to slap him. Since that’s exactly what I was thinking about doing, it’s a good thing he took her advice and left.
“Front and center tonight,” he demanded of me as he walked away. “I’ll be looking for you.”
Two hours later, as the band was about to start, Cara was still trying to convince me to come watch the show. “Please!” she whined over and over again. “You could just come and flip him off the whole time or something.”
“He would take that as an invitation.”
“Then come and pretend to sleep through it. That would piss him off.”
That was tempting, but it would still piss him off more if I just didn’t show at all. “You go. Have lots of fun making goo-goo eyes at Shane. I’ll be fine here.”
“I don’t want to go by myself.”
“You won’t be by yourself. Your boyfriend will be up on stage just a few feet from you.”
Cara rolled her eyes at me, but she couldn’t hold back the giddy smile.
“Someone has to stay here and man the booth anyway,” I went on.
Cara frowned. All of the booths had been deserted for a while now. Everybody was over at the football field waiting for the show to start. That’s when the crowd roared and we heard Kyle start in on his bogus spiel about being grateful to be back at his old high school doing a show for such a good cause.
“Fine!” Cara snapped and then stomped off without me.
“Wow she’s really unhappy about something,” a voice laughed behind me.
I turned around to see Lacy and Devon and a whole bunch of the most popular kids in school, including Isaac. “You guys are late for the show,” I said surprised to see them.
“Chicks and the bathroom,” Devon grumbled. “I told you we shouldn’t have waited for them.
“They’re not even playing yet,” Olivia retorted. But just as she said that, the music tore through the air.
I was surprised to hear them start with their most popular song, the one that played on the radio. I would have thought they’d save that one for last.
“Oh, I love this song!” Lacy said dragging Devon off at full speed. “Come on you guys, lets go! Val, aren’t you coming? Do you want to sit with us?”
I was floored by the invitation. Isaac’s circle of friends was a step or two above me in social status. They were a step above everyone. The thought of watching the show with Isaac was almost tempting enough to go, but Cara would have killed me if I went with someone after refusing to go with her so I said, “Oh, no thanks. You guys better hurry, though, or you’ll miss it all.”
They waved bye and then hurried off. I started packing up my stuff again and didn’t realize that Isaac hadn’t left with his friends until he said, “You’re not going?”
“Nope.”
“Not a fan of Tralse?”
“Not a fan of Kyle Hamilton.”
“Really?” Isaac was unable to hide his surprise. “I saw him talking to you earlier. It seemed like you guys knew each other pretty well.”
“He wishes,” I grumbled, the annoyance creeping back into my voice.
Isaac laughed and then wandered into my booth and sat down in Cara’s chair. “You’re going to miss the concert,” I couldn’t help but stammer.
“I can hear just fine from here.” Isaac glanced up at me. “Unless you want me to go.”
“No, you can stay. I may not be a fan of Kyle, but I’m definitely a fan of company.”
“Cool.”
Cool. That was an understatement. Isaac Warren ditched his friends and missed the Tralse concert to keep me company.
We talked through the whole concert and he was just as perfect as his reputation. It was almost enough to forgive Zach for dumping me. In fact it was heaven on earth until the crowd quieted and Kyle’s voice sounded out loud and clear for miles around.
“Thought we’d end the show tonight with a brand new song since it’s inspired by one of your own. I call it, ‘Cryin’ Shame.’” It was quiet for a moment and then in an almost angry laugh he shouted, “Blow off this Virgin Val! One! Two! Three! Four!”
The band wailed out a short intro and then Kyle began singing.
She’s smokin’ hearts with a burnin’ flame
She’s got a wild side without a name
And when she’s riled it’s a cryin’ shame
Yeah! Yeah! Yeah! I’ve got it bad
Yeah! Yeah! Yeah! I’m goin’ mad
Cause in your head you’ve got it right
Won’t go to bed without a fight
You think you’re wise, you think it shows
So show me wise without those clothes
Isaac raised an eyebrow at me, but I couldn’t even shrug. I was frozen. My heart had stopped. Everything had stopped.
She’s playin’ hardball and it’s nothin’ new
Short skirts so enjoy the view
She’s a coldblooded tease baby through and through
Yeah! Yeah! Yeah! I’ve got it bad
Yeah! Yeah! Yeah! I’m goin’ mad
Cause in your head you’ve got it right
Won’t go to bed without a fight
You think you’re wise you think it shows
So show me wise without those clothes
Come on Legs don’t go to waste
I could be your only savin’ grace
Put those morals on the back burner
Something tells me you’re a fast fast learner
As I listened to the chorus taunt me over and over again until the song came to a climatic end, I somehow remembered to breathe.
Cara says that I’m not a music freak like her because I’ve never had a song truly rock my world. She says that songs are like soul mates. That there are a lot out there that you might think you love, but then you hear that one song and you never question it again. The song shatters any previous notions you had about your favorites, and changes the way you see music.
Well I can attest to you that without a doubt Kyle’s song rocked me to my inner core. And it most definitely changed the way I see music. But that euphoric bliss Cara says you’re supposed to feel when a song changes you? Yeah… Not so much. Kyle’s song was the complete opposite of euphoric bliss. And Kyle, I’m quite sure, was the opposite of my soul mate. I was wrong about Olivia being the devil reincarnate. Kyle was way more evil.
The crowd was still cheering even though it felt like it had been hours since the song ended.
“Hey, you all right?”
“Oh!” I shook myself from my daze. I’d forgotten all about Isaac. “I’m fine,” I assured him. “I’m just going to kill him.”
“Eh, don’t let him get to you.”
“Easy for you to say. You’re not the one he’s got it bad for.”
Isaac laughed but he didn’t get the chance to respond because his friends were back. “There you are!” Stephanie DeWitt called to him.
Stephanie is gorgeous of course. And nice. She’d be my main competition if I were actually in the running for Isaac’s affections—not that that would be much of a competition.
My heart sank when she held out her hand to him and he allowed her to pull him to his feet. But I felt a little better when she said, “I figured this might be where you’d disappeared to.” Then she turned to me with an enormous smile and said, “Can you believe it Valerie? Kyle Hamilton wrote a song for you! That is so awesome!”
“Awesome,” I agreed half-heartedly. It was easier than explaining how I really felt.
“Wow, you are so lucky,” she said with a bit of a sigh. �
�Are you going to go out with him?”
“So I can show him wise without my clothes?” I laughed. “I’ll pass. Besides, if I remember correctly, he’s going out with Olivia tonight.”
Everyone looked at Olivia, who’d been standing in the back of the group, clearly sore about Kyle’s newest song. I smiled as fake-sincerely as I could and said, “I wouldn’t want to move in on your man. He seems kind of perfect for you.”
She missed my sarcasm because her face perked up like she was touched by my concern. “Thanks Val,” she said in her sickeningly sweet whine. “I was afraid you were mad when he asked me out for tonight instead of you.”
I thought back to a couple of hours ago when he’d been begging me to hang out tonight. I had a feeling Olivia was going to be stood up.
It was so hard not to laugh in her face, especially when I saw the way Isaac was biting back a smile too. “Oh, no,” I said. “Of course I’m not mad about that. Kyle and I would never work out. I mean could you see the bad-boy rock star dating Virgin Val?”
“Oh! That reminds me,” Stephanie said interrupting the conversation. “I didn’t get the chance to come by your booth earlier. Am I too late?”
“Did you want to buy something?” I asked, as surprised as I had been every time someone purchased something that day.
“Yeah! Lacy’s necklace is so cute, and I think what you’re doing is just so great.”
“You do?”
“Of course! Us girls need to stand up for ourselves more often. I’m kind of in to feminism, you know? I’m going to major in liberal arts.”
“That’s cool.”
“So is all of this. What you’re doing could really help the feminist movement, Val.”
I was a little overwhelmed by Stephanie’s energy. I stumbled over my words as I asked, “There’s a feminist movement?”
“Oh yeah! I belong to the National Organization for Women. That’s the organization we were supporting over at the cheer squad booth. You should come with me to my next meeting. You’d be perfect for it. We need pro-active people so badly.”
“Feminist organizations?” Mason Hewlett laughed. “You are such a freak, Steph.”