Wonderwall

  I wait until her body relaxes completely under mine. Her lips unfurl in a slow grin before she flutters her eyes open. Her hand glides from my back to my hips, until she’s touching me again, guiding me to where I want so desperately to be. My body begins to tremble, out of nervousness or need, I don’t know.

  “I’m ready, Bas.”

  I love those words. They’ve just become my favorite words in the world. I kiss her, sliding forward inch by inch, letting her get used to me. She’s so tight, I don’t think I’ll last long. I close my eyes and bite my lips, fighting the release that’s around the corner. She moves under me and brings her hips up, making me lose my restraint. I slide all the way in and enter heaven.

  Chapter 9

  Sebastian

  I trace Liv’s face, from her hairline, down to her cheeks and then to her swollen lips. She closes her eyes, and I feel her body shiver next to mine. We’re entwined in a perfect lover’s embrace, our skins still warm and sweaty from lovemaking. I can get used to this.

  “How are you feeling?” I ask.

  She opens her startling eyes again and gives me a smile that I know is only for me. No one else will ever experience it. It’s an ‘I love you, Sebastian’ smile and I’ll treasure it for the rest of my life.

  “Amazing. You?”

  I chuckle. “Do you have to ask?” I kiss her gently, savoring the softness of her lips, their amazing taste. It’s meant to be a brief kiss. I pull back.

  “But I’m serious. Are you sore? Did I hurt you?”

  “I’m okay, Bas. It didn’t hurt as much as I thought it would, and the pain only lasted a few seconds.”

  I feel a tiny pressure on my chest give way. I’d never hurt Liv on purpose, and I’m glad our first time wasn’t a traumatizing experience for her. I’ve heard awful stories from my friends. My hands trail down her naked body, and I still can’t believe she’s here in my bed, that she’s mine.

  “Are you hungry, I brought sandwiches and sodas.”

  At that precise moment, Liv’s stomach grumbles. We both laugh. “I guess I am. Who would have thought that sex would open one’s appetite?”

  I jump out of bed and put my boxers back on. Liv sits up and pulls the sheet with her, covering her breasts. The sight of her like that, in my bed, makes my heart overflow with a feeling that’s hard to describe. It’s happiness, euphoria, and also an irrational fear that what we have won’t last. No, I won’t let my thoughts stray that way. I smile at her, hoping she can’t read what’s in my mind, and give a sandwich to her.

  “I promise something fancier next time. Chocolate covered strawberries and champagne.”

  She shakes her head before she takes a bite of her snack.

  “This is perfect,” she says after she swallows.

  I sit next to her and kiss her exposed shoulder. “You deserve the best the world has to offer. I promise to give you that.”

  She grabs my hand and kisses my open palm. “All I want is you, Bas.”

  I drink her in, unable to hide my feelings from her. I love this girl with my entire being. I don’t care that I’m only sixteen, and that most people will dismiss my feelings as young love, a crush. I know what I feel, the emotion inside me isn’t fleeting, it isn’t a phase. My love for Liv is the kind of love immortalized by literature and movies. It’s epic, and it will transcend more than a lifetime. I can live a thousand lives, and my soul will always search for hers. I’m bound to Liv for all eternity. I know it in my bones. I’m not even a sappy romantic and look at what kind of thoughts erupt in my mind when I look at her. I have it bad.

  “What are you staring at?” She drops her gaze.

  “You.”

  “Why? Do I have food on my face?”

  I put my index finger under her chin and bring her gaze back up again. “I’m staring at you because I like what I see. That’s all.”

  She leans forward and stops a breath away from my lips. “I like what I see, too.” She breaches the gap between us and kisses me.

  I cup the back of her head, and she lets go of the sheet covering her torso. Her warmth radiates through me and stirs something down below again. My hand skims the underside of her breast as our kiss becomes something more, something vital.

  “Bas, my parents are probably home by now. I gotta go,” she says against my lips.

  “Humm?” I pretend I didn’t hear her, moving my lips from her mouth to her chin, down her neck. Her breathing becomes shallow, but she pulls away, and her hands rest on my chest, keeping me from following her.

  “Bas, I’m serious.”

  “Okay, okay.” I rub my face, trying to dispel the lust fog clouding my brain. I shouldn’t even attempt a second round with her now. She says she’s not sore, but I’m pretty sure she will be in a couple of hours. I should let her recover.

  Liv gets out of bed and searches for her clothes scattered on the floor. I lean back on my elbows and watch unapologetically.

  “Stop staring, Bas.” I see the corners of her lips twitch up.

  “I can’t help myself when you’re parading that hot bod of yours in front of me.”

  She hits me with her t-shirt before putting it back on.

  “So, what do you want for your birthday?” I ask.

  “Bas, you don’t need to give me anything.”

  I roll my eyes. “You’re going to make it difficult, aren’t you?”

  “Of course.” She smirks.

  Fully dressed now, she comes to me and places her hands behind my neck. My arms encircle her waist, and I pull her closer.

  “Thank you,” I say.

  Her eyebrows furrow, marring her lovely face. “For what?”

  “For letting me be your first. Your first everything.”

  Her face relaxes, and she traces my hairline, all the way down to my jaw. “I wouldn’t have wanted anyone else but you. Thank you for making my first everythings the most treasured experiences of my life.”

  “There are more firsts in your future, Liv. And I want to be there for all of them.”

  ☂ ☂ ☂

  After Liv leaves, I can’t think of anything else besides our first time. I keep replaying it, like a movie. My chemistry book lies open on my desk, and that’s the only attempt I made at studying. Mom will flay me alive if my grades dip below a C, but my concentration has yet to make an appearance.

  I decide to brainstorm ideas for Liv’s gift. Her sixteenth birthday is two days before Christmas, which means, I need to find two perfect gifts in a week. Don’t ask me why I waited so long to start searching. I’m a guy, procrastination is in my DNA.

  After an hour searching online, I believe I found at least one gift for my geek girlfriend. She’s a fan of romance and fantasy novels, I know she’ll love a signed first edition book by her favorite author. The only drawback is that the shop is in downtown L.A., and they won’t mail it to me. I convince the shop owner to keep the book reserved for a couple of days until I can persuade my parents to drive me there. I’m not allowed to drive outside of Littleton yet—Mom has trust issues in regards to my driving skills.

  The moment they arrive home, I make my way downstairs. They’re outside, chilling on the patio. There’s an open bottle of wine on the table already. When I slide the door open, Mom and Dad turn to look at me.

  “Hi, honey. How was your day?” Mom asks.

  I shrug. “The usual.”

  “Did you see Liv today?” She narrows her eyes at me. I think she can either hear my thoughts or mothers have an uncanny ability to detect when their sons have had sex.

  “Yeah, for a little bit.” I feel my face heat up and look at my shoes.

  “Humm.”

  I don’t like when Mom makes that sound, it means she’s connecting the dots. I need to change the direction of her thoughts.

  “Uh, that’s what I wanted to ta
lk to you about. You know that Liv’s birthday is coming up, right? I think I found the perfect gift.”

  “That’s great, Bas. What did you get her?” Dad asks.

  “A signed, first edition book by her favorite author.”

  “I’m sure she’ll love it.” He takes a sip of his wine, and just like that, the topic is out of his head.

  “I know she will, but here is the problem. I found it at a store in downtown L.A., and they won’t mail it. I’ll have to pick it up.”

  “You’re not driving to L.A. You’ve just gotten your driver’s license, and you barely passed your street exam,” Mom says and don’t I know it? She reminds me every day.

  “Yeah, I figured as much. Would you be able to pick it up for me?”

  “Bas, you know how hard your dad and I work. The last thing we need is to venture in that jungle for an old book.”

  “Come on, Mom. Please. It’s for Liv. You like Liv, right?”

  She rolls her eyes. “Of course I like Liv, but couldn’t you have picked up something at the Littleton Mall?”

  “Honey, give the kid a break. You should be proud that you’ve raised a hopeless romantic. He wants to do something nice for his girl.” I can’t believe Dad is coming to my rescue, but I won’t question his motives.

  “I’ll tell you what,” Dad continues. “I’ll take you out to dinner tomorrow after we pick up Liv’s gift.”

  I can see the change in Mom’s face. Dad knows how to mollify her like no other. No wonder they have been happily married for twenty years already. I can learn a lot from him.

  Chapter 10

  Olivia

  Saylor bangs her notebook loudly against the table. “Okay, spill! What’s up with those annoying, secretive smiles that keep popping up on your lips every ten seconds?”

  I bite the inside of my cheek to keep the grin off my face. “What smiles?”

  Saylor narrows her eyes at me. “Don’t pretend you don’t know what I’m talking about, Liv.”

  I’ve been dying to tell Saylor the reason I’m on cloud nine since I saw her this morning, but I knew she would make a big fuss about it, and I didn’t want the whole school to hear the news, too. Now, sitting at her kitchen table, trying to study, I’m just holding my tongue until she figures out why I can’t stop smiling like a fool.

  “Can’t I just be happy for no reason?” I chew on the end of my pencil.

  Her eyes widen, and her mouth makes a perfect O. “Holy shit! You had sex!”

  The corners of my lips twitch up. “It took you long enough to figure it out.”

  She hits me on my arm. “Bitch! I can’t believe you didn’t tell me. When did it happen? And how was it? Tell me everything.”

  “Ouch! Don’t need to get violent.” I rub the sore spot.

  Saylor stands up and begins pacing in front of me. “I can’t fucking believe it. Olivia Marie Dawson traded her V-card in before me. It must be the end of times.”

  “You did?”

  Saylor and I turn at the same time to find Mandy, Saylor’s next door neighbor, standing by the kitchen door with eyes as round as saucers. She’s a year younger than us, but she’s so petite, she looks twelve. Her bright red hair and freckled face don’t help make her look older either.

  “Oh, hi, Mandy. I didn’t know you were coming by today,” Saylor says.

  Mandy looks down, tightening the hold she has on her backpack straps. “Grams had to run an errand and Connor is at work. I hope it’s okay if I study in the living room.”

  She turns to leave, but Saylor reaches her in two steps and stops her. “Why don’t you sit down with us? There’s plenty of room here.”

  Mandy glances at me, unsure, and nibbles her lower lip. I’ve hung out with her a couple of times before. She’s a sweet girl, but she’s abnormally shy. I know it’s her personality, but the fact that she’s been homeschooled her entire life doesn’t help either.

  She sits next to me and begins taking stuff out of her backpack, without making eye-contact with either Saylor or me. Suddenly, she says, “I’m sorry for blurting out that question like that. I didn’t mean to eavesdrop or pry.”

  “That’s okay, Mandy. I didn’t mind.”

  “And speaking about prying. I want details, Liv. Pronto.” Saylor plops into the chair opposite mine and leans forward, resting her elbows on the table.

  I sense Mandy’s open curiosity as well.

  “Well, what do you want to know?” I ask.

  “Duh! Everything. Let’s begin with when.” Saylor is at the edge of her seat; she can barely contain her excitement.

  “Yesterday afternoon.”

  “Where?”

  “In his bedroom.”

  “Classic,” Saylor says and then turns to Mandy. “When you find a boy who is crazy about you, and you’re crazy about him, a bedroom is always the best location for the first time. You can get adventurous later.”

  I shake my head. “Since when are you the expert on first times?”

  She rolls her eyes. “Since always. Now, when did you know that the moment had arrived, that you were going for it?”

  I want to be honest with Saylor, but then I look at Mandy. I don’t want her to get the wrong impression. She’s so sheltered. I don’t even know if she’s allowed to watch TV. Saylor has mentioned that Mandy’s grandmother is super protective of her.

  “You can say in front of Mandy. She’s not breakable,” Saylor says.

  “Okay, okay.” I take a deep breath. “I knew the moment had arrived when I stripped for him.”

  Saylor’s eyebrows shoot to the heavens and for the first time since I’ve known her, she’s robbed of words.

  “You stripped for your boyfriend? Weren’t you embarrassed?” Mandy asks.

  “Not really. I guess when you are really close to someone being naked in front of them, it’s not a big deal.”

  “Are you in love with him?” She’s looking at me with such hope in her eyes that makes me wonder what kind of life she has. She seems starved for love.

  Saylor snorts. “Liv is in so deep, she doesn’t know which way is up and which way is down anymore.”

  ☂ ☂ ☂

  Sebastian

  I haven’t been alone with Liv since Wednesday afternoon, and I’m already having withdrawals. I stole a few kisses here and there at school, but it wasn’t enough to extinguish the fire she had ignited. My schedule on Friday is insane, and I don’t get home from work before ten o’clock.

  I park my car and notice that the TV is still on in Liv’s living room. I know it’s late, but I can’t resist. My parents went to pick up Liv’s birthday present in L.A. today, and like Dad had promised, he took Mom out to dinner. My house is empty so there will be no distractions for me there.

  I call her cell phone as I jog across the front yard. I don’t want to press the doorbell and run the risk of her dad answering the door. Liv picks up on the second ring.

  “Hey, are you home?” she says.

  “Yeah. I’m actually standing in front of your door.”

  “Come to the back. I’ll let you in through the kitchen.”

  “Okay.”

  I put my phone back in my pocket and hurry to the back of the house. I open the gate to the patio gently, trying to minimize the noise. Once I’m inside, I mince toward the kitchen door. I kind of like sneaking around like this. Out of nowhere, a shadow jumps on me, and I let out a yelp.

  Liv giggles and puts her index finger of my lips. “Shhh. You’ll wake my dad up.”

  I grab her finger and pull her closer to me. “Then stop scaring the bejesus out of me.”

  I press my lips to hers, and she melts against me. I don’t know how it happens, but in two seconds flat, I have pushed her against the fence, and I’m kissing her like I’ve combined all our past and future kisses into one. On
e thing I know for sure, though. She’s wearing way too many clothes. God, I never thought I’d say this, but I miss summer already, more specifically, summer clothes.

  I move from her mouth to her neck, pushing the fabric of her sweater out of the way so I can taste her skin.

  “Bas, someone might see us. Mom and Jer are still up.”

  “I don’t care.” I trail my tongue over her collarbone, making Liv moan and tremble in my arms. “Let’s go back to my place. My parents are still out.”

  “I can’t. Mom wi—”

  A throat clears behind us. I jump back, and my heartbeat kicks up a notch. I turn around slowly to see Liv’s dad glaring at me from the open kitchen door.

  “It’s late, Sebastian. Either you come inside to wait for your parents or go home.”

  Heat crawls up my neck, and I glance down, nervously raking my fingers through my hair.

  “Sorry, Murphy. I guess I’ll go home now.” I look at Liv apologetically.

  “Are you sure you don’t wanna come in? We can watch a movie.” Liv says.

  I would love to spend more time with her, but I’m too embarrassed. Also, I don’t want to deal with a pissed off Murphy.

  “I’m kind of tired. I just came by to say hello, anyway.” I move toward Liv and lean down to place a kiss on her lips. But then I remember Murphy is still watching us like a hawk, so I settle for a peck on her cheek. “Night, Liv. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

  Chapter 11

  Olivia

  We get the call in the middle of the night. I don’t hear the phone ring, but when Dad shakes me awake, and I take a good look at his grim expression, I know something terrible has happened. My first thought is Kimmy.

  I sit up. “Dad, what’s wrong?”

  “Liv, there has been an accident.” Dad pauses and glances down. “Sebastian’s parents. They’re gone.”