by Lauren Wood
“Do you want to get out of here?”
His grin was contagious, but his words pulled me out of the spell. That’s what he had said to me so long ago, after our dance that started it all. He’d said those exact words to me and the next year wrote itself because we were inseparable from that point on.
“No, I just got here Mack. It looks like you haven’t been here that long either.”
“Not really, but I’m just here to see you.”
I wanted to believe that was true, that he’d thought about me through the years as I had him, but I didn’t. It was too much like what I wanted to hear and Mack always did have a silvered tongue.
“Here to see me huh?”
He nodded his head that it was the case, but I’d spied a woman that was looking our way. I wasn’t a master of body language, but I had a feeling that she was here with him and was not particularly happy that he was talking to me. I glanced down at his hands to see if there was a wedding ring and though I will hate to admit it, I felt relieved that there wasn’t a metal ring there. It meant that he was still unwed, but by the looks of the woman coming towards us, I didn’t think that he was necessarily single either. There was something going on.
“Yes Danny. It’s been a long time and I’ve always wondered what happened to you, how you got on. I thought you might come to this, so I wanted to see for myself. I heard through the grapevine that you became a teacher. It’s what you always wanted to do and I’m happy for you.”
I was surprised that he remembered that about me, but flattered as well. It at least meant that it hadn’t been all one sided back then. I hadn’t thought it was, but the reminder was always nice. I don’t know how I would have felt if he hadn’t remembered me. I would have been crushed most likely.
“Mack.”
The woman that was behind him was now close and she called out his name. Mack’s face changed a little and I could tell he had forgotten about his friend for a minute because he made this expression that I knew well. He’d been busted and now he was scrambling to figure out how to get out of it. Mack’s mind was always working.
“Denise, I would like to introduce you to an old friend of mine Danny.”
“Danielle, nice to meet you.”
The woman didn’t take my hand that was offered and after a moment I pulled mine back. I was right to think that she wasn’t happy that I was talking to Mack, but he seemed unbothered by her anger. They couldn’t have been that serious if he was being so flagrant about it.
“This is my new friend Denise.”
I smiled at her, but it was short lived because she was sending nothing but daggers back. Denise obviously claimed Mack, whether he agreed or not.
“Friends? That’s not what you were saying on the way over here Mack.”
Mack’s face got red and I was starting to get annoyed. I didn’t know what was going on with the two of them, but that didn’t mean that I wanted to be involved in it.
“Well it was good to see you Mack and Denise. I’m going to get back to my friends.”
I started to walk off as quickly as I could. That was a nightmare and it was one that I didn’t get to wake up from. All I had to do was walk away and that seemed like the best option at the moment.
I heard my name called behind me and I knew it was Mack. What I didn’t know was what he wanted and at the moment I didn’t care.
Chapter 5
Mack
Denise couldn’t have come at a worse time and I wanted to tell her to go. She wasn’t taking the hint though, instead she insisted on staying next to me. It was like she knew that I wanted Danny and she was going to make sure that it didn’t happen. I’d caused this by wanting her here in case Danny wasn’t here. I couldn’t have imagined coming to the reunion by myself. It would have been a mess. But now I created a mess that I didn’t know what to do with.
I told Denise that I would be back in a minute and though she protested behind me, I wasn’t going to let Danny walk away, not this time. I’d done it before and missed her ever since. The least I could do was get a taste of what I’d missed out on all this time. It was most likely not even as good as I remembered.
When Danny turned around and there was fire in her eyes, I knew that I was wrong. It had been as good as I remembered. I just knew it.
“What Mack? I have other people that I want to talk to.”
“Really?”
She shook her head and told me that I was still as full of myself as before. Maybe she was right, but she used to like this confidence. It won her heart once before. There was no reason that it couldn’t work again.
“Yes really Mack. Do you really think that I came here for you? You really haven’t changed all that much. You’re just the same guy in a better looking suit.”
Her words stung a little bit. This was all for her, whether she wanted to believe that or not. I was here because I knew she would be here and Danny was the only person I wanted to see. She was still as feisty as before though. This time around, I didn’t think she was going to go off with me and neck like we had done in the past. This time was different.
“You don’t mean that.”
“I do. So it was nice seeing you again. You’ve given me a real blast from my past, though I’m not sure if that was the past I was looking to relive. You and your friend have a good time.”
She was mad about Denise. I should have known that’s what it was that had her staring daggers at me. I had really fucked up bringing her with me. I’d gotten used to a woman on my arm at all times and this was one of those times that I shouldn’t have done it. She was now a liability instead of a status symbol.
“She’s really just a friend. Not like you and me.”
“You introduced me in the same way Mack. Or did you not notice over her fake boobs?”
I grinned at her and asked if she was jealous.
“How do you know that I’m not blissfully married with kids by now Mack?”
“You’re not married to me, there’s no ring on your finger and that body of yours hasn’t have a child. There is no way. It’s just as tight as I remember ten years ago.”
She was quiet for a moment and I knew that I was right. I hadn’t noticed a ring when I met her and I’d looked. She had as well, though I wouldn’t admit that I’d seen it. I didn’t want her to know how much I noticed. She wouldn’t like it.
“So am I wrong?”
“You always were good at talking out of your ass, you know that Mack? Seriously though, I’ve got to go and your little friend over there is staring daggers at me. I didn’t come here for this. You seem to bring drama with you, so no thanks.”
I couldn’t believe she was acting this way, but I wasn’t going to beg her for her time. I was too stubborn for that, no matter how much I wanted her and missed being inside of her. No broad was worth that. I wasn’t going to lose dignity because she wanted to be mad.
Walking back to Denise, I have to say that I wanted to just go. She really was the only reason that I was here and if she wasn’t going to even entertain the notion of going back in time, there was no reason for me to be here.
“Are you done talking to your stuck up friend?”
The two women amazed me. They didn’t know each other and they were ready to go after each other’s throats like they were lifelong enemies. I don’t think I would ever really understand women. I knew enough to get what I wanted and that was enough, most of the time.
“Yes I am, but she isn’t stuck up.”
Denise made a huffing sound and asked me if I was going to dance with her. I agreed, but it wasn’t who I wanted to spin around the room in my arms. The one I wanted was playing hard to get, even though I knew it was my fault for causing trouble. I shouldn’t have brought Denise.
Now I was holding her against me while she went on about how tacky the reunion was. She didn’t like the colors, the decorations, and the people. I started to wonder if she even liked me, but then pushed the thought aside because in reality it
didn’t really matter either way if she did or didn’t, it never had.
After the song was over I pulled back from her and looked around the room. I knew that I was looking for that signature color of blonde hair that Danny was known for and I saw her going to the side entrance by the bathrooms.
“I’m going to hit the head. I’ll be back in a minute. You still didn’t get us a drink.”
She tried to protest or say something, but I wasn’t too worried about what Denise said or felt. She was supposed to be helping me, not hindering me so she was going to have to learn her place if this was going to work. She was either going to stay out of the way or I would take her home.
I got to the bathroom hallway and waited for Danny to get out. She was still drying off her hands on a towel and tossing it back in the trash before she stopped short when seeing me.
“Hey.”
“Hey.”
“Where’s your friend?”
I shrugged and told her that I didn’t know and I didn’t care.
“She was here as a distraction.”
“Well it worked.”
Danny started to walk past me and I stopped her with a hand on her arm.
“I don’t want to fight Danny.”
“It’s Danielle and we’re not fighting. We don’t have anything to fight about and I haven’t thought of you in years.”
“Liar.”
“Maybe.”
She pulled her arm back and took another step before I stopped her with my body in her way. “If you really haven’t thought of me in all this time, kiss me and tell me that you feel nothing.”
“You’re being a bit much Mack, even for you.”
“I’m serious. If you’re so sure that you’re over me, kiss me. Just once and I won’t bother you again for the night or ever.”
“It’s tempting, just to get you to go away.”
I knew she didn’t mean it, so I just nodded my head like I understood. I did actually, but she was about to. I knew as soon as our lips touched, it was all going to start coming back to her. I would have moved if she had really insisted, but she didn’t want to. While she fought me tooth and nail, we both knew that I was going to win in the end. She had been mine for a long time. Space and time wasn’t going to change that.
Chapter 6
Danny
“Is this what it has come to?”
“What do you mean?”
I gestured at his body in front of mine. I wanted to get passed him and I could have if I just slid past, but I didn’t want to run. He was challenging me, so sure that one kiss was going to make me into a whimpering ball of woman like before. I wasn’t so young and naïve now. What had started as a way to see him and how he was doing, was now more of a challenge that I wasn’t ready for. I knew that I shouldn’t have come and I was going to blame Mariss for this when I saw her next.
“I mean this. You’re going to stand here next to a bathroom, demanding a kiss? It doesn’t seem very romantic.”
“I didn’t know that you liked all that mushy stuff. Told me before that you hated it.”
“You were horrible at it and I was just trying to be nice. It was easier to just tell you that I didn’t like it. I’m older now and I know that it’s not true. I do like a little romance and this, upwind for the toilets, is not it at all.”
“Damn you’re busting my balls Danny. Do you know how long it’s been since someone did that?”
“Apparently a little too long Mack. You were always full of yourself, but I think it’s gotten worse.”
“So you won’t even give me a little kiss? Are you that worried about what will happen?”
He was goading me, I knew that, but there was a side of me that wanted to kiss him. I was attracted to him now, still as I had always been and I looked to his lips for a moment. It was just a kiss and if that meant that he was going to leave me be for the rest of the reunion, I was okay with that. Somewhere deep down inside I was blaming Mariss for bringing me and for wearing this red dress. It had picked up enough attention tonight.
“Fine, one kiss. It won’t change anything.”
I didn’t sound as sure as I would have liked to and I wasn’t given any more time to think. He was moving towards me and dipped me down for a kiss that made me smile. There was still this magnetism that he possessed and I was still just as pulled to it as I was before.
His lips were soft and insistent and it had the effect that he was going for. Each second that passed made it harder to stand and then the tongue pushed into my mouth made me moan. I tried to hold it in, but I had never been able to before. Mack still had the secret touch and I was lost in it for a minute. I forgot why I had agreed to it and I forgot why I had walked away. In truth, it was impossible to think when he was touching me like he was.
Neither one of us pulled free of the other. It was his name being called sharply behind us that pulled me from his voodoo spell and I was able to pull myself together. It was hard to, but the sound of Denise calling to him and then materializing was enough for me.
“What the hell are you doing?”
“Give me a minute Danny. I need to take care of this.”
I told him not to waste his time. I didn’t need him to take care of it. I needed to get away from him before I embarrassed myself any further.
“Don’t. I’m leaving. That was the deal.”
He tried to stop me, but Denise bitching in his face kept him at bay. I saw Mariss from across the room and went to her. “I’m taking off. I will get a cab if you aren’t ready yet.”
“No, I think I have had enough of high school for one night.” She looked at me and must have seen how distressed I was. “It looks like you have as well.”
“You have no idea.”
***
“So are you going to tell me what happened back there? I saw you talking to Mack.”
I grimaced at the sound of his name. “Yeah, but it wasn’t by choice. He came up to me and wouldn’t back off. Told me I had to kiss him before he would let me pass.”
I could see the giddy look in my friend’s face and I didn’t like it. She didn’t seem to get it as far as I was concerned. She seemed to think that there was going to be this fairy tale ending between us. I knew better. I don’t know why, but Mariss had always thought that I should have stayed with him. It wasn’t a conversation that I wanted to have, so I stopped her in her tracks with the next part.
“But then his girlfriend came up and was pissed off if you can imagine. So I just didn’t want to stick around.”
“His girlfriend?”
I nodded my head and agreed. It was a mess. A big mess and now at least she wasn’t looking like she was going to swoon from the romance of it all.
“Oh, well that’s not how I thought it was all going to work out. I thought you guys would get back together.”
I may have thought the same thing myself, but I didn’t want to say it out loud. I was far too worried about how everything else was working out. I’d seen him from across the room, alone and looking fine as ever. There had been a big part of me that wanted to see him and I’d felt the same needs and desires run over me, but there had been a difference this time. He wasn’t alone and all of those thoughts had gone out the window, whether he felt the same way about it or not. It hadn’t worked out like I wanted it to at all.
“I guess I didn’t think we would get back together, but maybe a night of sex would have been nice. He always had a way about him that I haven’t found again. He always was a god in bed.”
“So why did you walk away?”
“Did you not hear the part that he had a girlfriend there with him?”
“Was she introduced as his girlfriend?”
I hadn’t said she was introduced at all, but Mariss seemed to just know things. She was good at reading people and I trusted her instinct more than my own sometimes.
“Well no. He introduced her as his friend, but he introduced me the same way.”
“Oh, well that doesn
’t have to mean anything. She may have just been his date for this thing. No one likes to go alone.”
“We did.”
“No Danny, we went together. There is a big difference. He probably brought her so that he wasn’t alone. If she meant anything to him, he wouldn’t have been kissing you.”
I knew she was right to some degree, but I still didn’t like that he brought some women with him. She might have saved me though. I don’t know what I would have done if she hadn’t been there. Most likely I would have made a mistake. A big one.
Chapter 7
Mack
After I dropped Denise off, I was perturbed to say the least. I had played out the night and seeing Danny again in my head. None of the scenarios that I’d came up with were anything like what just happened. It was a problem and I knew more than once now that I should have gone solo. It was how I used to go everywhere, but somewhere along the lines that had changed. That change was going to cost me and it was a price that was too high as far as I was concerned.
I went back to my place and even though Denise had wanted to come by, I wasn’t in the mood to deal with her. I didn’t even have the desire to have sex with her, which was one of the only things that I had ever liked about her in the first place. Denise was a trophy and I had mistakenly used it thinking that it was going to make things better. Instead it had made things worse. Denise hadn’t made Danny jealous in the way that I wanted. It had just made her look past me.
The kiss was still on my mind though and it wasn’t something that could be faked. I knew as soon as our lips met that there was still something there, even if she didn’t want to admit it. That kiss is what changed the game for me. I wanted that feeling back that only she could deliver and I knew that I was going to have to work harder for it this time. Danny hadn’t ever been all that easy. She was untouched before I came into her life and I wanted her untouched and only mine again. There was a feeling that came over a man when he knew that he was the first. There was a certain part of me that could never forget her and she was a first for me as well. Danny was the first and dare I say the only woman that I’ve ever loved.