Chasing Leah (Journey Series)

by Williams, C. A.

  I stick out my hand to shake his oversized masculine hand and introduce myself. “Leah Rossi. This is my first year here. I got a job waitressing tables over at Ginos downtown.” Ginos was one of the first places we stopped at when we came to town and they just happened to be hiring, I was luckily hired on the spot and it would work perfectly with my schedule once classes started. Mr. James, Ally’s dad, wanted us to get situated before having to worry about bills but I was always a hard worker and didn't like being a charity case, even though the James family didn't see it that way.

  “Oh yeah,” Gage looked down at me as he shook my hand. He had to be over six feet tall, which meant he towered over my petite height even with my heeled boots on. The view from down here wasn't bad at all with his shaggy blonde hair and piercing turquoise eyes. “I run by that place every morning.” He pats his stomach which I can tell is completely flat and doesn’t have an ounce of fat on it, complimented by what looks to be a very chiseled chest, by the way his black polo shirt is pulled tight. “Helps me keep off the pounds that I put on when I stop by there for pizza and beer, once or a twice a week. Probably more often now that I know they have a gorgeous new waitress." He grins at me and flashes me his perfect white teeth that contrast nicely against his tan left over from the summer.

  I shrug at him, “Well make sure you request me next time you come in, I'll let you leave an extra nice tip.” I feel two hands on my hips before wrapping around my waist and giving a slight tug. “C'mon, Leah. The floors not as crowded, dance with me. Please!" Ally pouts her bottom lip out at me that reminds me of a certain little toddler that I’m already missing and I can tell by the glossy look to her blue eyes she has most definitely been getting her 'drink on' and there’s no sense in arguing with her now. “Ok, I'm coming....."

  I let her drag me away as I throw a wave over my shoulder at Gage, who looks amused by Ally’s condition. I’m sure he’s used to that sort of thing by now especially being the bartender. And she’s right it’s not so bad, a lot of people have started migrated off the dance floor, probably into the many empty bedrooms that this big old house has. I start to sway my hips to the music-Ally and I move together as we dance to the beat. I close my eyes and continue to dance; when I pop them open Ally is no longer my partner. I catch her blonde head a few feet away, she grins at me and waves. Oh I see how it is; she ditches me for some guy whose back is turned to me. I swivel my head around as I feel Gage’s piercing eyes on me. Yup, sure enough I caught him looking and I don't mind one bit putting on a show for him.

  Chapter 3

  Chase

  I scan my eyes through the crowd as I sip on the warm beer that Teddy shoved my way before taking off with a group of girls. Just thinking of it makes me cringe and I’m a guy. I should be knocking him with a fist pump and asking him if I can join in on the action but I’m just not into that sorta thing. I’ll let Teddy take that title since he’s the lead singer in our band and all. Isn’t that like a golden rule that lead singers get all the chicks even if it’s some local college band?

  “Hey Chaaaaase!” I hear a high pitched voice scream from across the room and see a tall figure flying towards me. “Whoa, you all right?” I ask as I wrap my arms around her small waist to steady her wobbly feet. Yup she’s definitely had one too many and it’s still pretty early. “Chase I was totally hoping you would be here. You really need to meet my roommate Leah, you’re like made for each other or something, it’s some crazy shit but I think I’m a little bit psychic so you’ll just have to trust me on this, ‘kay?”

  “Alright Ally whatever you say, how much have you had to drink tonight exactly?” I don’t get a response from her and before I know it I’m being dragged into the middle of the overcrowded dance floor as she twirls around me. The minute I met Ally I could tell she was well a little crazy but in a good way I guess. Her roommate that she keeps insisting on me meeting hadn’t made it up yet from their hometown and ever since then she’d been trying to introduce us. And I don’t think that’s going to happen tonight with the way Allys been downing her drink that she carried with us onto the dance floor. I catch her from face planting on the floor and she giggles right before planting a wet kiss on my cheek. “Thanks hotstuff, that woulda been realllllly bad!”

  ******************************

  Leah

  After dancing for a while longer I head back to grab another drink and check my phone for any missed calls or texts from Clarissa. I shoot her a short text and she replies that Caleb was a little sweetheart all night and he’s tucked away in bed. Just thinking about the little man tugs on my heart and makes me wish I was there instead of here. I scan the crowd and see a guy heading my way with Ally leaning against him and his arm swung around her shoulders. As they get closer Ally lunges my way and I grab her in a hug.

  "L! This party is ah-mazing, can you believe it'll be like this the next four years?" The guy that was basically holding Ally up straight grins at me, flashing me two dimples on either side and says in a low husky voice, “I think it’s time for Ally to go home.” Ally giggles and pokes him in the chest, “Ahh my Knight in shining armor ready to escort me home now too.” Yeah I bet that’s what he's going to do- and escort her into her room, then the bed, out of her clothes then who knows where depending on his skills and I bet they are some excellent skills if I'm judging the book by the cover.

  From the pair of vans on his feet, to the interesting looking tattoos peaking out the sleeves of his vintage looking Metallica shirt that’s stretched tight over his broad chest, I can tell this guy isn't Ally’s usual type. Not that he's bad looking-far from it. Ally just normally goes for the more hippy type- dreads, flowing clothes, and peace signs. His dark brown hair looks to be cut close to his head and no flowing clothes here, I think I can count his abs through his shirt. His eyes complete a nice package with the most unusual shade of green I've ever seen, he must be wearing contacts. And was that a tongue ring I saw? Ah I see- Ally was really going to have some fun tonight.

  “Well you ladies ready to go then?" He looks over at me as I pluck out the keys. “Yup let’s go princess your chariot awaits," I reply as I lead the way to Allys car. He flips his black cap backwards and picks Ally up like a sack of potatoes as she squeals and I can see the cords straining in his muscular arms. Yeah, he definitely works out. "It'll be a lot quicker this way," he grins at me as I feel myself stare a little too long at the sexiest smile I think I’ve ever seen that looks just a little bit crooked. And those dimples did I mention those yet? I open the back door for him and he effortlessly slides Ally over and scoots in next to her. Wow, I guess I really am the chauffer for the night. Well then.

  "Thanks so much L! Did you have fun tonight?" Ally mumbles from the backseat. “A blast. I'm just ready to go to bed, I need to be up super early.” I don't hear a response and glance in my mirror. Allys blonde hair is sprawled across tattoo guys lap and I think I hear the faint sound of her familiar snores. Well maybe she won't be having as much fun as I thought tonight.

  I pull into one of our reserved parking spots at our apartment complex. The place is pretty nice, not only is it about a mile from campus, it’s also very secure, Mr. James wanted to make sure us two single college ladies were well taken care of. I push the remote to lock the car doors and punch in the code to open the outer doors of the apartment. Ally and her guest follow me in and up the stairs to our second floor apartment. I guess Ally wasn't that out of it as I hear her whispering in his ear and giggling behind me.

  "C'mon my rooms this way,” she giggles out as she pulls his hand down the hallway, "Good night Leah!" I pay Clarissa for watching Caleb and thank her for cleaning up the place that is now clean of all toys. If I had the extra money I would totally be hiring her for cleaning services as well right now. She tells me to call anytime she would love to watch him again. Well I had a hard enough time leaving him for that long we’ll see about that. I shut the door behind her and open my door to peek in on Caleb. He’s so sweet and angelic
looking when he’s sleeping, when he’s up it can be a totally different story.

  I head back to the kitchen and pull out a bottle of water. I snort when I hear Allys squeals from down the hall. Yeah I'm sure she'll be having a good night. I twist off the top as I scootch out one of the barstools we picked up at a resale shop and flip my laptop open to check my email before heading to bed. I can hear Allys giggles drifting down the hall as I pop my ear buds from my iPod in and press play. I love her and all but I really don't need to hear THAT.

  Nothing major, as I scroll through my inbox, I check them daily wondering if I'll hear from my mom. I wish I at least knew she was safe, she hasn't even bothered with one phone call. If she doesn’t want anything to do with me, I would think she would at least wonder about Caleb. He’s probably better off anyways, I’ll be able to give him the life he deserves.

  I shriek and jump out of my chair when I feel a warm hand land on my shoulder. "Whoa, Whoa.” Tattoo guy takes a step back holding his hands out in front of him as I pull out my ear buds and clutch a fist to my erratic heart beat. I’m not sure if the fluttering is from him scaring the shit out of me or the electric jolt I felt course through me when his hand touched my bare skin. "Sorry I didn't mean to scare you, I didn't realize you were listening to music. I just wanted to say see ya later. Ally should be out for the night, I think,” he says with a smirk.

  I can feel my heart beat slowly return to normal even though it begins to pick up once again when I have another long look at this man candy. He has the fullest lips I think I’ve ever seen on any guy before and it looks like he constantly knows some kind of secret with a mischievous looking smirk almost always in place.

  “That’s okay you just freaked me out a little.” Ohmigawd those eyes are incredible. I follow him over to the door as he opens it and I lean out the door frame. “Um did you need a ride?” He barks out a laugh and raises an eyebrow at me. Jeez I didn’t know that would be so hilarious, maybe since he already got a ride from Ally…… “Nope I think I can make it,” he says as he flashes his dimples at me. “See ya around then I guess.” I shut the door quickly behind him and turn the deadbolt into place. Well that was quick, he couldn't have been in there any longer than 10 minutes with Ally. I walk down the hall and peak my head into Allys room. Passed out, I shake my head and make my way to my room and crash into bed after checking on Caleb one more time. I can already tell tomorrow is going to be a long day.

  Chapter 4

  Chase

  Holy shit I wish I would have met Allys roommate the minute she told me about her. After she pulls me back through the crowded party, well more like I carry her drunken ass, she stops at the most gorgeous, sexy, beautiful girl I’ve ever seen. In my life. It was like a scene straight out of a movie when I saw her, all noise around me ceased to exist and time seemed to move in slow motion as Ally dragged me closer and closer towards this beautiful girl who had her eyes locked on mine. She looks a little exotic with her dark hair, gray eyes, and smooth olive skin. And her body. She’s probably about as tall as my 12 year old sister, maybe a little over five feet tall but she definitely has a lot more going on then my prepubescent sister with curves in all the right places and a very nice rack. Keep your eyes on her face, eyes on the face Chase. I don’t need to look like one of those jackasses who drool over a set of boobs like a freakin’ dog.

  After helping Ally up the stairs of the apartment complex and making sure she got in to her bed alright I headed down the hallway and watched her click away on her laptop in the kitchen. She really was beautiful and had an intense look about her like she carried the weight of the world on her shoulders.

  The minute I touched her bare shoulder I could feel how soft her skin was and I didn’t want to move my hand away even though I scared the shit out of her. I wonder if Ally told her about me, she didn’t really seem to know who I was especially when she offered me a ride. A smile creeps on my face as I picture the innocent expression on her face.

  I pull out my guitar to work on a few lyrics of a song I came up with. That’s kind of my role in the band. Being an English major I love to write poetry. But if I were to confess that to any guy that would definitely make me a pussy. So instead I make them into songs, which makes me awesome since we have quite the following of girls around campus.

  I click off my light after working for awhile and think about Leah again. I would definitely need to introduce myself to that girl properly. I picture her small body and smile to myself as I hop into bed and slowly close my eyes to the image in my head.

  ********************************************

  “Yo Teddy, you up yet?” I shout from the bottom of the stairs that lead up to his room. Him and Mark, our other band member, share an old house with a few other guys right near campus. They had tried to get me to be a roommate but I wasn’t really in to living with a bunch of smelly other guys. Plus I had grown up in a big family, the quiet was definitely nice.

  “Yeah, yeah I’m up.” A half dressed Teddy stumbles down the stairs while trying to pull a ratty looking t-shirt on, followed by a girl I’m pretty sure he hooked up with at the party last night. She shoves a piece of paper towards him before he lands a wet kiss on her cheek and ushers her out the door. “Call me soon,” she says in one of those little girl voices that women think are hot. What is hot about sounding like a toddler, maybe it’s just me since I have a three year old sister who I adore. Total turn off.

  “Definitely,” Teddy replies as he shuts the door behind her and proceeds to crumble the paper up into a ball and shoots it towards the garbage can.

  “Do you ever have anything more than a one night stand dude?”

  “Now where would the fun in that be Chase? Then they just start to get all clingy and think you’re in a relationship then they think you need to buy ‘em shit and only be seeing them the whole time. Not my thing. I don’t think I can be a one woman kind of man, there’s way too much sampling from the buffet that throws themselves at me for that to be going on. We’ll leave the monogamous relationships to you.”

  “My mom would kick my ass if I acted the way you do, so I think I’m good.”

  “Whatever mama’s boy.” Although he’s clearly jealous of my mom. Whenever he goes home with me to visit, he’s always sent home with enough home cooked meals to last him a week so he tries to come as much as possible. “You ready to practice then?”

  We meet up with Mark in the garage that sits out behind the house and straighten out a few kinks on a couple songs that we’ve been working on. Teddy sets up most of our gigs and they help to pay the bills while I’m in my last year of school. Teddy and Mark look at the whole band thing as a lifetime career but that’s just not my thing.

  Mark puffs on a cigarette and offers me one as I pack my guitar back up. I shake my head at him, “Naw man I’m good. Haven’t touched one in a couple of weeks.”

  “Awesome man, wish I could give ‘em up but it’s just not gonna happen. Pick up any chicks at the party last night?” Marks not as bad with the women as Teddy but he’s no saint either. I tend to look for women somewhere other than parties.

  “No I took one home but just to make sure she got in alright.”

  “Aw Chase always making sure everyone’s taking care of. Dude you need to get a good fuck.” Teddy says as he bums a cigarette off Mark.

  “Well I did meet her roommate that she’s been trying to hook me up with, kind of. She’s fuckin’ amazing; sexy as hell and she seems like a little spitfire.”

  “Whoa those are the ones you need to avoid dude. She’ll Lorena Bobbit your ass in your sleep if you screw up. Let me hook you up with one of the girls that come out to our performances. They’ll worship you with all that poetry shit you can write ‘em.” Teddy flicks his cigarette and snubs it out with the heel of his boot.

  “I’m good man.” Been there, done that. Taking any kind of dating advice from Teddy would be the worst decision I’ve probably ever made in my life. Not gonna happen. And I’m pret
ty sure my penis will stay intact if I happen to start dating Leah. I wouldn’t do anything to screw that up. “I’ll see you guys tomorrow night.”

  I head back to my jeep and hope I’ll run into Leah and maybe I’ll actually introduce myself this time.

  Chapter 5

  Leah

  Oh what is the damn noise? I roll over and shove one of my fluffy pillows over my head but can still hear the loud shrieking. Ally comes crashing into my room and slams her hand down on the offending noise. “Really Leah? I have a wee bit of a headache, I really don't need to hear your alarm at 4:30 in the morning.” I groan and vaguely remember setting it the night before. I squint one eye at Ally and can't help but laugh at her disheveled appearance which I rarely ever witness. Ally would be the picture perfect for the all American girl with her long blonde hair, model like figure, and pretty features but she’s never fit into any kind of mold and has always been herself no matter what anyone thinks. She currently has red streaks sticking out of her messy ponytail, makeup that clearly wasn’t washed off last night smudged across her face and her hello kitty pajamas look to be thrown on backwards and inside out.

  I groan and sit up while glancing at the red digital alarm clock. Shit I was going to be late if I didn't get my ass into gear. Why did I agree to morning shifts at Ginos? Oh yeah, him. I glance over at Caleb who is still passed out even with all the noise and feel a smile spread across my face. One thing we both inherited from my mom, we sleep like the freakin’ dead. Luckily, since I had to get up so early he stayed asleep and Ally had him for the morning.