Life Altering Beautiful

by T. A. Hardenbrook

  “Hey Seven” comes this magical voice that makes my insides squirm and body turn colors that aren’t part of this world. “Hi” I manage to say and quickly steal a glance at him. His low slung dark jeans and tight black t-shirt show off his flawless physique, I’m wondering if anything looks bad on this man. Yeah I highly doubt it. And there it is, that awkward moment like everything else in my life, no one knowing what to say or do next. “So uh yeah, you free Friday Seven” Stone says finally breaking the uncomfortable silence. I glance over at Tammy who is currently sporting a look of horror on her face directed at her brother. “Um, I don’t have class Friday, so no I guess”, I still can’t look at this man so back to picking at the ends of my ponytail. “Well good, we are spending the entire morning walking around this campus over and over so your ass isn’t getting lost anymore.”

  I let out a small laugh, holy shit I laughed! Stone smiles when he hears it, and apparently Tammy has now turned her head in my direction cause I’m getting the I’ve got two heads look from her now. “Yeah I guess that would work, but I can’t guarantee I won’t get lost, I’m kind of hopeless.”

  “You’re not hopeless Seven, just directionally challenged. Give me your phone” Stone says and extends his hand. “Oh um……….” as I fiddle in my pocket to find it. Handing it over Stone punches in what I’m betting is his number, and a second later you can hear his phone ringing in his pocket. Giving me back my phone he says he has my number and will text me Friday morning. Mr. Sex on a stick offers a slight wave and walks away. I stare at my phone for a second until I hear the shriek from my roommate. “Oh hells no, don’t let his charm fool you! That man is nothing but trouble, and that’s being nice! Nothing good comes from my brother; please don’t let him ruin you. And keep your panties on, you hear!” I smile at my now worried roommate “he is just helping me out, come on you know I’m completely not his type.” Tammy drops her head “Yeah, that’s what they all say.”

  I don’t know if classes are just easy or maybe I am just finally getting the hang of college life, but I swear before I blinked an eye it is Friday. And the crazy part about it I am actually excited for this day, maybe I was starting a new chapter in life. Standing in front of my closet I start to debate what I am going to wear this morning. Shit I haven’t done this since the night of prom, and my wardrobe is reflecting that I don’t care anymore either. Letting out a sigh I start to throw things over my shoulder, “not this, or this, what in the hell is this?” I mumble quietly. “Just pick something, preferably ugly so my lurk of a brother doesn’t look at you” comes from under the covers across our small dorm room. “Sorry Tam, I thought I was being quiet” I almost feel bad for waking her up, but I consider it payback for dealing with her neurotic tendencies in the mornings. Tammy throws the covers back and sits up suddenly; “Yellow sundress and cowboy boots” and flops back down as quickly as she shot up. Hey that’s not a bad idea, it’s still warm out and my boots are so old that they will be comfortable to walk around in. “Thanks Tammy” I say as I grab the dress and throw it on. After pulling my hair into a ponytail I slide on my boots, and tuck the phone into the side of my Old Gringos then head for the door. “Don’t fall for his charm Seven; it’s nothing but an act!” I shake my head and close the door. Fall for his charm; yeah like that’s going to happen just like prom night didn’t occur either.

  Stone

  I open my eyes to darkness in my bedroom, a restless night of sleep and the sun has yet to make an appearance. My mind seems to be in over drive; like the on button is permanently stuck causing a never ending loop of thoughts to swirl in my fucked up brain. Throwing the sheets back I climb out of bed and head over to my closet. Might as well get a work out in this morning since last night a douche bag got the better of me with a couple swings, I think as I riffle through some piles of clothes for a pair of clean shorts and a t-shirt. I glance over at the mirror and notice the light bruise around my left eye, “shit” I mumble. Explaining this to my family tomorrow is going to be fun; chicks may dig it but the relatives not so much. “Fuck it” I mummer as I grab my bag and head out the door to Ol’ Red, maybe a little ass kicking is just what I need this morning.

  Walking through the door at the gym I can see Jason yelling at two guys in the cage. He turns to look at me and I give him a little head nod and head over to the locker room. Throwing my stuff in my locker I sit down on the bench and start taping up my hands. There is something calming about the feeling of tape, or maybe it’s the thought that I’m going to connect it with someone’s face soon that puts me in a good mood. Suddenly the tape flies out of my hands, looking up I see Jason standing over me tossing the roll back and forth in front of him. “I heard you got knocked around a couple times last night” he chuckles glancing at my left eye. Glaring at him I hold my hands out “Wasn’t paying attention, lot of shit on my mind right now and I would rather just go hit someone than deal with it.”

  Jason begins to tape my right hand and nods, he knows better than to keep talking to me. Once finished I stalk over to the cage, noticing only a handful of guys are standing there now. A smile creeps over my lips; even here no one wants to deal with me when things don’t go my way.

  After several hours of face pounding, body smashing, sweat poring, full force workout I glance at the clock. “Fuck” I growl as I hurry out of the cage and head to the lockers. “You already tapping out Stone?” I hear from across the gym. I don’t even have time to give an F-you, I’m forty five minutes late to meet with Seven and the thought of her waiting for me makes me sick to my stomach.

  Weaving in and out of traffic I finally get to the campus and slam my truck in park. I look like shit and really I don’t care, I’m just hoping she waited for me. I shake my head as I head to her dorms, why would she wait for me this long. I’m a total dick; she doesn’t need to put up with the bullshit in my life. I can see her sitting on a bench watching something on the ground, and holy crap does she look amazing.

  I don’t know what it is about this woman that draws me near her like a magnet, I can’t seem to stay away. Stopping a few yards in front of her I take a moment to breathe her in. She is something beautiful, the way her red hair shines down past her shoulders in the sun, the freckles that splash over her nose, and the smile she lets me see so rarely just melts my heart. I’m standing here like an idiot when she glances up. “Oh hey, thought you maybe forgot about me” she says as she places her hand over her face to shield it from the sun.

  Taking the seat next to her I let out a sigh “sorry I got caught up at the gym, I wouldn’t forget about you ever, it’s just unfortunately time management isn’t a skill of mine.” Then she smiles, and my dick stands to attention, I can’t help but reach over and push a long strand of hair behind her ears. She freezes at the contact of my hand, yet doesn’t pull away. I can tell she isn’t used to this much personal space exchange, but hopefully with time she will let me take it a little further. I want to taste those full lips of hers something fierce. Standing up I hold my hand out to her “well let’s get this tour on the road shall we?” Seven smiles and places her small hand in mine and I can’t help but notice how fragile she feels while holding her hand. “Um, why are your hands taped?”

  “Oh shit sorry, I was fighting and rushed out of the gym to meet you” as I drop her hand to start peeling it off. I could tell she is uneasy about the fighting thing, but that’s something she is going to have to learn how to deal with if she is going to be mine. Mine? Where was that thought coming from, that’s the last thing I need in my life right now. But strangely enough the thought of her belonging to me is taking up a lot of space in my fucked up mind. What’s one more issue to add to the growing pile, claiming her as mine should be easy.

  Seven

  We wander around for hours and Stone constantly has a reason to touch me. I can’t help but smile when our skin makes contact, yet have to remind myself he is just being nice. Not to mention all the women persistently staring at him as we walk by makes the
green eyed monster in me rise up ready to take vengeance. I can’t blame them though this man just oozes sex appeal, even in his gym clothes. Maybe it’s his smile and personality that draws me in, well that and the tattoos. I’ve always had a thing for bad boys, never pursued it because my parents would have gone ape shit if I ever brought one home, but oh do they make me tingle all over.

  Realizing it is now midafternoon I really should be calling it a day, as much fun as it is wandering campus together let’s face reality. I’m going to get lost again, there is not even a possibility of saving my directionally challenged ass, and Stone is probably done babysitting me anyways. “Thanks for the tour, but I’ve got a ton of work that needs to be done and I told Tammy I would meet her for lunch like an hour ago” I say sheepishly. Stone stops and gives me that trade mark smirk “well you’re allowed to blow off my little sister, but missing lunch is not okay in my book.” Suddenly I don’t know what to do with my hands, I want to reach out and hug him but what if he rejects me? Then I will die of embarrassment and live to be an old lady with like five hundred cats! I swear that man is reading my mind as he grabs my arm and pulls me into his body.

  I fold myself into his frame, feeling his large chest and muscles under his shirt; gosh this delectable creature is solid muscle. I could have stayed there for hours yet I know if this continues, I will just be fooling myself into thinking there is more there than just the obvious friendship. He is just a friend and I am going to have to accept it, besides it was nice to start having friends again. I had lost everyone after prom night; even my parents thought I was to blame. So calling him a friend is crucial for my survival. I start to pull away and he squeezes tighter, this just made me want to pull up his shirt and lick the abs I know are hiding underneath. ACK! What am I thinking; I’m totally being a hussy right now! I quickly remove myself from his grasp and take a step back; breathe I tell myself silently, just fricken’ breathe. I look up and stare into those blue eyes of his as he smiles, instantly condensing me into a puddle of goo on the floor.

  “What are you doing tonight” he says while searching my eyes for its secrets. I lick my lips nervously “Um nothing, I think Tammy and I are going to head downtown to Banjos, nothing special really” I swear this man is going to cause me to have an aneurism. “Yeah they play live music Friday and Saturday nights down there, care if some friends and I join ya?” Stone asks casually. My mind starts working in overdrive; he wants to go with us, but then he said friends, shit hold it together it’s not like he wants me. “Sure” slips out of my mouth before I can even think, and I’m betting the shock on my face is the reason he starts to laugh. “Well I’ll see you guys down there” Stone says while walking back to the parking lot. “Yeah there, got it” oh crap could I sound any more like a loser, me and my winning personality. Shaking my head I turn to start walking to my dorm room, only pausing for a minute to try and remember where in the hell it’s at.

  Chapter 4

  Seven

  Walking into my dorm room I notice Tammy sitting at the desk with her head phones on. This gives me a couple extra seconds to figure out how to break the news that we are meeting her brother at the bar tonight. Tapping my foot on the floor impatiently I decide to just go for it and casually blurt it out, ah yes but the headphones. Noticing a pen lying on the floor I toss it at Tammy; alright actually I launch it at her head. Nerves can make you do some dumb things; I’ll mark this down as one of them. “What the heck” Tammy shrieks as she twists around quickly while pulling off her headphones. “Oh, um, yeah sorry” giving her a frazzled smile. “Is there a reason I was so rudely interrupted from the pleasures I was partaking in with math” she asks while turning to straddle the chair. “Well I kind of told your brother I would meet him at the bar tonight, oh shit I mean us, I told your brother he could meet us” I close my eyes as I’m sure I’ve just given my infatuation with her brother away.

  Suddenly a big thud erupts and I open my eyes; just as I thought, my cover is blown. I can’t help but let out a small laugh as Tammy sits on the floor, tangled in the chair she apparently tipped over when I confessed my plans for tonight to her. “SEVEN” she whines, “I want to enjoy this night, you know dance with boys, have someone sneak us drinks, get a little wild! You know damn well that’s not going to happen with my brother there!” Tammy finally manages to pull herself out of the chair and quickly stands up only to throw herself onto the bed in exasperation. I can’t help but to continue to smile at her; she really is a drama queen, but not in the sense I want to knock her teeth in. For her being my only friend I am becoming quite attached to her in this short amount of time we have spent as roommates. I walk over to sit on my bed and wait for the preaching from Tammy to begin………5…….4……3…..2….. “Well so much for fun tonight, maybe I should just take a vow of celibacy this year, oh even better how about I just drop out of college all together and become a nun. That’s perfect, I’ll become a sex deprived nun who eats, sleeps, and prays.”

  I can’t help but laugh at her now; sometimes she just gets so lost in her own little world that I don’t even think she realizes what she is saying. I realize now it was a bad move telling her brother; but I couldn’t lie to Mr. Baby blue eyes, I mean this man has some magical power on me. Abracadabra and my panties would just fall off, poof and they were gone! “I’m sorry” escapes from my lips wait no I’m not sorry. This wonderful delectable man just wants to be friends and truth be told I could use some more; so no actually, I’m not sorry.

  I sigh “Tammy, it’s going to be fine, let’s just go out and have a fun night. There is always time to stalk boys later; I just want to enjoy some good safe company tonight.” Tammy turns her head back in my direction “First it’s not fine, second there is no fun with my brother, and third I don’t stalk boys; they stalk me.” And there’s that wicked grin from her I am growing to love.

  For just heading to a bar called Banjos Tammy sure went all out on getting us ready. I actually started to feel hot in the white mini dress she had me borrow and little black booties. Waiting in line to get in the door I can’t help but stare at my reflection in the glass. I really could venture back out into this world. I am a pretty girl, and it is about time I begin to feel that way consistently. My hand start to play with the curls Tammy spent so much time on tonight until she smacks it away.

  “Douche Lord and Lady Home wrecker at five o’ clock” she says, her voice dripping in disgust. I quickly look behind me “what are you talking about?” Smacking my arm again she points in front of her. “Oh geez that’s not five o…….” and there goes my ability to talk. Walking up to the bouncer is Stone and some stripper. Okay that was a completely mean thing to think since I don’t know her, but I’m betting it is a true statement.

  My blood begins to boil; the way he has his hand on her back, the look of lust in her eyes, and not to mention the way she throws her head back and laughs when he whispers something in her ear. Yeah I’m betting she has a pole in her bedroom and does private dances for all the good little boys and girls for that matter. “Look at that dress, I’m sure her china hutch is on display for everyone tonight” Tammy scowls at the woman pawing all over her brother. “China hutch” I ask. “Yeah you know, where you keep your fine breakable things” She says while throwing me the look of don’t you know. Thank god for this girl tonight cause immediately I break into a laugh. “You mean her vagina” I say quietly. “Ick, I hate that word. So vulgar and real” she exclaims with a grimace. “Well that is what it’s called” I laugh as I shake my head at my roommate.

  Glancing back over at Stone who is now saying something to the bouncer I try and quickly look away but am caught gawking at him. Instantly my insides are doing belly flops, this man is gorgeous. I can’t help it that I constantly keep staring at him. Those dark blue jeans that hang low on his hips, tight black t-shirt again that pulls around his large arms, and tonight he has topped of his look with a black baseball hat. I don’t know what other colors this man has in his
wardrobe for t-shirts, but I believe the only color he should wear is black from now on.

  Tammy catches me staring and smacks me again “Seriously, he is like a walking disease. I mean look at the women he is with! She could be a poster model for herpes!” All I can do is roll my eyes at Tammy, yeah she loves her brother something fierce, but his life choices are obviously not one of her favorite things. The bouncer whistles in our direction, causing both of us to look over to the front of the line. With two fingers he beckons and carefully we push our way to the front of the crowd. “Hands ladies” the giant of a man asks and I quickly gave mine up to him. A big black X is made on my right hand in sharpie; he turns to grab Tammy’s hand when she rapidly pulls it back. “I don’t do marker on my skin thank you” she informs the large man. “Well you will if you want to get in, you’re under 21 deal with it” he snaps as he proceeds to mark her hand as well.

  I glance at the door while Stone holds it open for slut of year and then flashes me that smile. Stalking over to the door Tammy seems to be irritated again “well come on, we have a night of FUN TIMES waiting for us” she snarls. I have to pick my panties up off the floor after that look from Stone before I can manage to move. I’m going to need a drink or maybe ten tonight I think as I glance down at the large black x on my hand and sigh.

  The music is already blaring when we walk in and with the lights low it’s hard to see where Stone and that girl went. Oh well it’s better for my poor mind to lose them tonight, I don’t think I can take seeing them suck face and play grabby grabby with each other and still manage to enjoy my evening. Tammy finds a table up by the stage and motions for me to follow. Walking past the platform to grab a seat I catch the eyes of the lead singer, and instantly know I’m in trouble.