XO

by Melissa Jane

  “Rosie, I don’t care,” Jacob says spinning on his heel. At least he’s stopped, so I can talk some sense into him.

  “How could you not? It didn’t have to be this way. Kevin knew you’d snap violently which would result in you being removed from the team.”

  He shrugs indifferently. “Then let him have that victory.”

  Adamant, I shake my head. “This… this just isn’t… right.” Growing lightheaded, I use a locker to steady myself. “You can’t lose everything because of me.”

  Clasping my shoulders, Jacob turns me to face him, kindness and compassion radiating from his beautiful eyes even with everything going on in his own world. “Rosie, I won’t let anyone treat you that way. You don’t deserve to be called those names. You don’t deserve the hate that should be directed at me. And if standing my ground means being kicked off the team, then so be it. I’d sacrifice a hell of a lot more for you. I’d sacrifice everything for you.”

  “How can you say that when we are only a new couple?”

  “We may be new with dating each other, Rosie, but you forget I’ve always loved you.” He smiles wryly. “Why do you think I always harassed you? It wasn’t because I liked seeing you mad. It was just the only way I could get your attention. And now that I have it, nothing else matters. Not even a stupid ball game.” Jacob kisses my forehead before resting his to mine. He holds my hands at my side, but I feel his thumb draw a X on my palm. I return his kiss with an O, my world spinning, butterflies fluttering in my stomach.

  “You love me?”

  “Of course, I do. I always have. I just had to convince you to love me back.”

  11

  THEN

  “Everyone’s staring,” I anxiously murmur, feeling all eyes on us as we walk to the lunch tables at recess. It’s the next day after the fight with Kevin, and it seems word spread like wildfire. Gossip is rampant, and they make no effort to disguise that Jacob and I are the center of that gossip.

  We aren’t just gossip.

  We’re a scandal.

  There’s Chelsea sympathizers and Rosie supporters—merely those who’ve been the victim of Chelsea’s nastiness in the past. The cohort is divided in what they want to believe is morally right. Even though Jacob and I didn’t technically cheat, Chelsea is running with that headline, and now we’re left to fight off the slew of unsavory mudslinging and random sightings of derogatory graffiti.

  “Who cares,” Jacob says in a tone that tells me he, in fact, doesn’t care what they think.

  I take a seat across from Nessie and look up at him. “It’s a world away from how they were looking at you last week.”

  Jacob frowns, taking my legs and swiveling me on the bench so my back presses against the tabletop. He leans down on an angle, arms placed on the table either side of me. “Listen to me, Rosie,” he says gently, a glimmer of mischief in his eyes. “Yes, we are an unexpected couple. Yes, it will take people time to get used to it. And if they don’t, I really don’t give a shit. What they’re seeing right now…” he quickly glances around at those watching him, us, “… they’re seeing their ex-football captain crushing hard on an insanely beautiful, insanely creative girl who’s held my attention since freshman year.” Jacob inches closer, his lips only a mere inch from mine. I grow heady at his closeness, forgetting about the very people we’re talking about. “So, let them stare. Let them see how much I enjoy feeling that tongue of yours in my mouth.” Crushing his lip to mine, Jacob claims my mouth in his typical delicious fashion, expertly kissing my fears and anxieties away. He slips me his tongue, and I return the favor, his fingers gently placed under my chin. For a public display, it was incredibly intimate. Breaking away, he returns to softly peck my lips before taking a seat next to me, acting completely normal as if we didn’t just give everyone at recess a show.

  Nessie, who sits frozen in place, lettuce falling off her raised fork, blinks to regain composure. “Um… I’m about to become friendless if my father sees you doing that.”

  I chuckle, still feeling the glow of Jacob’s kiss. “He will never know, so you have nothing to worry about.”

  Nessie scoffs. “That man can read my mind. He will know, and he’ll justify it saying Jesus spoke to him.”

  Jacob smiles cheekily. “So, don’t think about me kissing your friend, and you should be sweet.” I nudge him in the ribs as he throws a crisp in his mouth.

  “After a display like that, the entire cohort will be thinking about it.”

  “You know…” Jacob starts as if he’s up to something. “I can find you a date. I already have someone in mind.”

  “Are you nuts,” Nessie exclaims, eyes wide in horror. “My father will kill you, him, and me, and not necessarily in that order.” She moves her lunch away, folds her arms on the table, and leans in close as if we were in the midst of conspiring. “Why…” She looks around with her eyes. “Who do you have in mind?”

  Both Jacob and I laugh at the about-turn, but Nessie, she’s deadly serious and cocks a brow waiting for her answer.

  “How about we all meet up at the diner, and I’ll make introductions, then?” Jacob suggests.

  “My father will lock me in the house for the rest of my life if he even thinks a boy is looking at me, and you expect me to go on a blind date? Say when, and I’ll be there.” Sipping on her straw, Nessie looks around to ensure no one overheard.

  “This afternoon,” Jacob says, seemingly confident in his ability to get the other party involved.

  Nessie’s eyes twinkle. “Rosie, I’ll text Dad and tell him I’ll be at yours.”

  “Technically, you won’t lying.”

  “It’s okay. I’ll tell Jesus to look the other way, just for one afternoon.”

  ~

  “See you in ten,” I say to Jacob, leaning through his car window to give him another kiss. He’s driven us home from school, Nessie included, and drops us off directly in front of my driveway, even though he lives a mere ten steps away.

  “Are you doing that on purpose?” he asks, gently teasing.

  “Doing what?” I reply, coyly, using my arms to plump my cleavage just a little more. “Oh, this?” I flirt. “Maybe.”

  His eyes narrow with lust. “You’re a very bad girl.”

  Throwing a wink, I run after Nessie and enter the house. Immediately, I notice something out of place that ironically should be completely normal. Mom’s handbag sits on the hall stand letting me know she’s home from her business trip.

  “Mom,” I call, listening for her reply.

  “In here,” she sings out.

  “Come on,” I encourage Nessie to follow me into the kitchen. I see my mother standing at the counter, a bottle of wine at her side, the glass already almost empty. She’s still dressed for work which tells me she hasn’t been home long. I walk around and give her a hug, and even though it’s been a while since she’s seen me, she appears uneasy.

  “Well…” she starts, smiling insincerely, “… it seems like a lot has changed in such a short time. Hi, Nessie.”

  “Good afternoon, Mrs. Reign.” Nessie shifts awkwardly, sensing the tension.

  My mother glances awkwardly between us, and my cheeks heat at the questions playing on her mind. I just never expected it to be so blunt and cruel.

  “So, when did you and Jacob Lynch become an item, Rosie?”

  “A few days ago.”

  She remains silent while topping up her wine. “Does your father know?”

  “Yes,” I reply cautiously, my heart plummeting.

  “And he is okay with this?”

  “Jacob came and asked his permission.”

  Mom looks away quickly, lips pursed in agitation. “So, my permission doesn’t matter?”

  I shift awkwardly, glancing to Nessie who appears increasingly uncomfortable. Does she really think she has a right to be upset over this? “You weren’t home, and you never answer my calls. Why are you so bothered by me seeing Jacob? Just a few weeks ago you were saying he and I sho
uld build a bridge and get over whatever animosity we have and now—”

  “To be friends, Rosie. To be friends, not… lovers.”

  “Mom! We’re not lovers. We’ve barely starting dating.”

  “Well, since it’s so new, you can end it without any trouble.”

  It’s like a slap across the face. “Why would I end it?”

  “Because he isn’t good for you, Rosie. You’re too different. He’ll only end up hurting you.”

  “I’m a teenager, it’s bound to happen. But Jacob won’t.”

  “You don’t know that. That’s what boys like him do, and you’ve just placed yourself in the firing line.”

  I take a step back, my own mother proving a traitor. “Why? Because you think I’m not good enough? Is that it? Boys like Jacob Lynch belong with girls like Chelsea Campbell?”

  “I don’t care who boys like Jacob Lynch belong with. But you’re my daughter, and despite what your father says, I do not permit you to see him.”

  None of this makes an ounce of sense.

  Mom loves Jacob and always has, so the words pouring from her mouth are nothing but lies. She doesn’t think Jacob is a bad person, and she knows he won’t hurt me.

  “Well, since you’re never here to be my mother, I’m choosing not to listen. And why are you acting so weird? Both you and dad are acting really strange.”

  “That’s called marriage, Rosie,” she says, sighing irritably.

  “Well, perhaps you should focus on your own relationship. Jacob says he loves me. And I believe him. And I just so happen to love him, too. And there’s nothing you can do to ruin that.”

  12

  THEN

  Me: Dad, where are you?

  Me: Please come home.

  Me: Mom said she doesn’t know where you are

  Me: Send me a message at least. Please!!

  I swipe a tear itching down my cheek and throw my phone onto the bed. Five missed calls and a string of messages later, and I still haven’t heard a word from Dad. Being unreachable has never been his style, at least not with me. When I asked Mom, she was curt and almost at the bottom of her wine bottle—on a weeknight.

  A flash of light in my peripheral catches my attention. I turn to see a series of flashes coming from Jacob’s room across the street. For the first time since this afternoon, I smile. With the sheer curtains blowing in the cool night’s breeze, I further slide up the window and place my hands on the sill. It’s hard to make out his face, so I text him instead.

  Me: Come over.

  Jacob: Your mom will cut my balls off and try to feed them to me.

  Me: She’s passed out on the couch. Please come, I need you.

  Jacob: Who am I to deny you.

  Biting my lip, I watch as he disappears back into his darkened room to appear moments later softly closing his front door behind him. He jogs across his yard, and when the street light illuminates his face, he smiles and gives a quick wave before crossing the street.

  My heart races at seeing him, and my skin tingles in anticipation. I watch as he skilfully climbs the tree and treads carefully over the veranda roof before reaching the window.

  “Hi,” he murmurs in a husky voice that weakens my knees.

  “Hi, yourself.”

  Under the silver glow of the moon, we stand on either side of the window, our lips drawing together until they meet halfway. Jacob kisses me deeply, a hand snaking through my hair.

  “I can’t believe I could have been doing this for as long as I’ve lived across the street,” he says with a cheeky smile against my lips.

  “Wasted opportunities,” I agree, but deliver a gentle poke to his ribs. “But you thought slinging an egg through my window was a better option.”

  “I’m a world-class idiot.” Jacob laughs, kissing me once more before I step aside. He climbs through the window and pulls me into his strong arms. I breathe him in, the scent of a fresh shower deliciously bathing his skin.

  “Will you stay with me tonight?” I whisper, and he pulls me closer against his chest.

  With a thumb under my chin, Jacob lifts my face to meet his, gently kissing me before murmuring his promise. “I won’t leave you.”

  ~

  “I’m sorry Mom was so hostile today,” I say, apologizing for having to miss our dinner date.

  Jacob pulls the bed cover over our heads and turns on his flashlight. We lay facing each other, legs intertwined, the blue light gentle enough not to blind us.

  “I promised Nessie we’d arrange for another time. She did look rather disappointed the date wasn’t going to happen.”

  I’m torn between finding it funny that Nessie was so committed to something she’s never alluded being interested in, and feeling horrible for her, given that she finally decided to tell Jesus to turn a blind eye to her human desires.

  “That was really sweet of you to drive her home.” I trace my finger around his lips.

  “It’s the least I could do. I think your mom put the fear of God back in her.”

  “My mother was like a possessed madwoman. She even threatened to call Pastor Bryant and tell him his daughter was fraternizing. Fraternizing, can you believe it? She’s lost her damn mind.”

  “She’s just looking out for you and Nessie.”

  I don’t have it in my heart to tell him the spiteful words she said, so I sum it up. “She doesn’t want me seeing you.”

  His thumb gently strokes my cheeks, a small melancholic smile playing on his lips. “There aren’t many who do want us seeing each other.”

  I swallow hard.

  “Don’t do that,” Jacob urges.

  “Do what?”

  “Don’t let others dictate your happiness.”

  “I don’t. It’s just… if my own mother can’t support me being you with, then who can?”

  “Rosie, we don’t need anyone to give us their blessing. This is our life, not theirs.”

  “Do you promise?”

  “On my life.”

  Jacob pulls me close, wrapping my leg around his waist. He claims my mouth, gently at first before deepening the kiss, his hardness pressing between my legs. Everything within me wants to feel what’s like to have Jacob inside me. For him to claim not just my heart and every thought but to be the first—my first—but now isn’t the time and here is not the place. I want it to be on neutral ground where we don’t have the threat of being caught by unsuspecting adults. I also don’t want to be considered easy.

  Jacob snakes a hand up my white tank top, the feeling of his skin against mine, arousing me beyond what I’m so far barely managing to control. His fingers graze the side of my breast and the sensation instantly hardens my nipples. I turn slightly so he can gain better access, and he accepts the invitation, gently kneading my breast, running his thumb over my aroused nipples. Jacob pulls away, leaving us panting with need.

  “I think I better sleep on the floor,” he says, with ill-disguised lust.

  “No! Stay in bed with me.”

  “I can’t stay in bed with you if you’re gonna be teasing me like that.”

  “I can behave.”

  His smile is mischievous. “I don’t think you can.”

  “I don’t want you to go, so I won’t do anything to tease you.”

  “Turn around,” he orders softly. “Let me spoon you.”

  “That will stop you from touching me?”

  “Shit, no. But it’s gotta be better than what I’m wanting to do to you while you have your leg wrapped around me and nipples staring me down.”

  Laughing quietly, I turn my back to Jacob, and he pulls me close, our bodies melding as one. Kissing my shoulder, Jacob’s breathing slows, finding comfort in each other.

  “Jacob,” I start.

  “Mmm?”

  “Remember you told me by the pool that if you could be anywhere it would be far, far away from here?”

  “Mmm.”

  “Can I come with you?”

  Jacob squeezes me tighter. �
�That was always the plan, baby girl.”

  ~

  For the next week, Jacob stays the night with me. He would wait until lights went out in both houses before silently sneaking out and crossing the road, then climbing the front tree with ease. Each night our make-out sessions became hotter and more heated, and when I was the one ready to break my own ‘waiting’ rule, Jacob would give me a firm no. He understood my desires were getting in the way of my better judgment. I had my heart set on somewhere where it would be just the two of us. Somewhere where the world isn’t against us. And each time he put an end to our making out, I respected him more. Because it’s not as if the boy isn’t struggling himself. I can feel his own desire pressing against me. I could feel the urgency in his touch.

  My mother is back to her regular work schedule, leaving Dad and me to enjoy some peace. The night I couldn’t contact him, it turned out he had taken a long ‘drive’ and lost track of time. He’d ended up crossing the state border and kept going until he got whatever it was out of his system before he turned back around and came home. Conveniently, as my mother was boarding another flight. The strain of their relationship makes me question whether divorce is on the cards. The thought alone taking its toll on me. Jacob’s there every second of the way, giving his support in more ways than I could ever imagine.

  But then, of course, we have our own battles. And they don’t stop coming.

  “A good improvement, Rosie. Your tutorials are obviously paying off.” Mr. Johnson places my most recent test paper in front of me.

  “Thank you, sir,” I say, smiling at the ‘B-’ in red pen. Still not where I want it to be for finals, but Jacob’s an excellent teacher. When I need a break from numbers, he distracts me with his tongue. When I need to concentrate on formulas, he sits on the opposite side of the room, a table separating us. Jacob turns in his seat to eye off my results.

  “Good job, Reign,” he says, smiling cheekily. “No more make-out sessions if you want to get that to an A.”