by Mansi Negi
Facing Mom
Home... the place I desperately wanted to avoid. A place that, until recently, had been my own private oasis.
Now the feelings associated with home had taken on a darkness and I didn't know if it would ever be the light place.
I could escape the outside world to, again. Home now felt like everything I wanted to break free from, but it was at my own doing, I knew that.
I knew the choices I had been making since Jonas had come into my life weren't in the best interest of our family or myself.
They weren't even in the best interest of him for that matter, but somehow I'd managed to let myself fall in love with him and here we were sitting in my driveway at 9 pm after having stayed out all evening and telling no one where we'd been.
My ex-boyfriend had come over to expose Jonas and I's relationship and leave my home life, school life, and social life in absolute turmoil, and I had just run away, but it was time to face the music and I found myself fighting back the urge to just disappear with Jonas and never return, it would be easier in some ways.
I wiped the sweat off of my hands and onto my skirt.
"Do you want to go first?" I asked, looking at Jonas with pleading eyes. "I don't think I have the gall to face my mom just yet, after her chat with Chad." I said and meant every bit of it.1
"I can..." Jonas unbuckled and rubbed his fingers over my hand. The porch light was too bright for him to try to steal one more kiss, but in the event that this was it for us, we needed some form of intimacy.
If I never saw Jonas again after tonight, a light touch in the dark cab of his pick up was what I would have to remember him by. My heart began to beat erratically. I needed more...
"Jonas." I grabbed his hand. "I love you." I said, not knowing if I was just saying it out of fear or because I needed him to know that he wasn't alone in his feelings.1
"You do? You love me?" He asked, bringing his free hand over mine and squeezing... he smiled at me. "I knew you did." He bit his lip, and stared at me intently... L
ocking his eyes on the heavy rise and fall of my chest. Panicked would be an understatement for what I was feeling.
"It's going to be ok, Lyla." He said thoughtfully, tracing his thumb over the back of my hand comfortingly, before jumping out of the truck and walking up the sidewalk to the house.
I watched him jiggle the locked door handle and pull his keys from his pocket. He slipped inside only to emerge a few moments later to wave me in.
I jumped from the car slinging my book bag over one shoulder and pulling at the neck of my shirt to make sure there was no trace of bruised flesh exposed.
"Everyone's in bed." He whispered, raising his hands in question. I stepped inside and relief flooded me. What could have happened, considering the revelation Chad had no doubt revealed to them, for my parents to just go to bed. I expected to find them up waiting for us.
Had he actually told my parents though? Had he revealed anything to them? Or did he just come to talk to me? I felt a slight tingle of hope make its way through my body.
I turned toward Jonas.
"We have to be careful from now on... I don't know what Chad told my parents. I'm going straight to bed, please no sneaking around this week, not until we know for sure that we're in the clear." I whispered.
Jonas nodded in agreement and disappeared into the kitchen. I was hungry too, but my nerves made the safety of my bedroom seem like the more appealing option.
I noticed Tyler was awake as I approached. He looked up at me as though he wanted to talk.
"What's going on? What happened?" I slung questions at him quicker than he could answer as I plopped down on the corner of my bed.
"Did Chad Tell them anything?" I nervously twisted my fingers together and looked at my feet.
"Yes, he told them... but I told them he was delusional and you were too afraid to come home with him here after he'd attacked you at school today." He smiled, but it didn't meet his eyes.
"I told them Jonas protected you and you were at work with him. You just didn't want to be around Chad again after he'd punched Jonas and choked you." He looked at the wall as if he were disgusted by the lie.3
"Thank you, Tyler, I'm so sorry you had to lie like that... did they believe you?" I asked, looking at him sympathetically.2
"They're in bed, aren't they?" He inclined his head toward my parent's room.
"Listen Lyla, what you and Jonas choose to do is none of my business, but if it affects me or any of my sibling's lives here, then it's a problem. I like it here and I don't want to lose this place... I don't want to see Tristan, Lucy, and Wyatt pay the price for you and Jonas' indiscretions."
"I know... I'm really sorry." I said, feeling awful.
Tyler had cleaned up our mess, not out of loyalty, but self preservation. Chad had been blamed for everything, and I had gotten off free.
The one person who was solely responsible for the upheaval of everyone else's lives had gotten her cake and to eat it too, and if that weren't bad enough, I had no intentions of breaking things off with Jonas.
I should, I shouldn't have gone down this road from the start, but I couldn't end it now... I couldn't deny Jonas anymore, I'd tried, and only made things worse.
Sleep was fleeting that night. I didn't know what kind of questions I'd be met with in the morning, and every time I'd start to drift off, my mind would jolt me awake with a new lie, or idea, or way to deny an accusation. I was certain this must be how murder suspects felt during a trial.
By the time morning arrived and I made my way down to the kitchen I was so exhausted I wouldn't have remembered any of the excellent defence. I'd come up with during the night anyway.
"Lyla... come here for a minute." My mom called me into the kitchen. She eyed me as I walked through the door, looking disapprovingly at my turtleneck.
As she approached me, I had to mentally remind myself to not knock her hands away as they reached for the black cotton material at my neck and folded it down.
She gasped, bringing a hand to her mouth. Which in my opinion, was a bit dramatic, I had looked at it this morning and the blotches were now a much lighter yellow and green than yesterday, they were healing quickly.
"I think we need to press charges Lyla." She said, stepping back and frowning.
"I can't believe you didn't tell me what he did. Is this the first time Chad's been physically abusive to you?" She looked on the verge of tears and I honestly didn't know what to say. It was a lie.
All of it was a lie, and my parents were forever going to believe that Chad was my abusive high school boyfriend. He didn't deserve it, but I wasn't going to tell the truth either.5
"Yes, he's never touched me before, and I don't want to press charges. I think he is just going through some really hard changes." I said biting my lip and hating myself even more as the lies just kept coming more and more easily.2
"Don't make excuses for him Lyla, it's unacceptable." She turned and walked to the sink.
"Why would he think there was something going on between you and Jonas?" She asked as she turned on the water and began rinsing dishes.
Oh crap.
"I don't know mom, he also thought there was something going on between me and a teacher. I don't know what he was thinking."
Lies, lies, lies...and I officially am going straight to hell.
"Well I'm going to call the police and file a report, they'll be there to question you and get pictures, I would imagine, or I'll take you in after school."
She was adamant about reporting him. I couldn't let her do that though. As terrible as lying to her was I'd never ever accuse Chad of something he didn't do to the authorities.
"No! Mom, will you just let it go? I don't want to report him." I raised my voice a little, hating that I was treating my own mother poorly to try and disguise a lie that never even should have been.
"What's wrong with you Delilah? Why would you let someone put their hands on you that way and get away with it?"
She rested her hands on her hips and stood in front of me tapping a toe in annoyance.
"Because mom, I love him, or I did... and I don't think he was in his right mind." Tears were welling at my eyelids. This was ending one of two ways, either I play a more convincing role, or my mom finds out the truth, because there was no chance of me lying to the police and getting Chad in trouble when he had in fact, done nothing to deserve it.
I let some of the saline drops run down my face and turned away from her.
"Please mom, we're done, I just want to forget it." I cried, trying not to think about the magnitude of the deception I was alluding to.1
"Fine Lyla." She huffed. "But, you're not to see or speak to that boy ever again... and if I see him again, I may just take matters into my own hands." She pointed her finger, like she was even big enough to do any damage to anyone.
I dried my eyes with the back of my hand and hastily made my way to the truck. I didn't want to be in the house with her anymore, fear that she'd change her mind again and call the police or worse yet, tell my dad, had me sweating bullets. He would lose his mind.4
Party Time
I jumped into the back seat of the truck earning a sideways glance from Jonas.
"What are you doing Lyla?" He narrowed his brows at me, patting the seat beside him.
"Get your ass up here woman." He smiled at me, and bit his lip. Tyler slid against the passenger door to make room for me.
"It's fine really." I said catching his eyes in the mirror.
"Don't make me say it twice Delilah." He turned toward me and offered me a hand. I grabbed it and hopped over the seat into the front, settling in between the two.
"Good choice." Jonas winked and pulled out of the driveway, before draping an arm around my shoulder and pulling me against him.
Tyler cast me an unreadable look, that I pretended not to see and we drove to school.
The day’s events at school were nothing from the ordinary, I sat with Jonas at lunch pretending to tutor him, but actually making plans for our apartment that I found myself day dreaming about the rest of the day.
Mr. Schultz had backed off and algebra was bearable again. It felt nice for everything to be back to normal.
We headed to Jonas' truck at the end of the day and he motioned for Tyler to sit in the back, even though I didn't mind him sitting up front. I climbed in and Jonas pulled me to him, starting up the truck and immediately running his hand up my skirt.
I would have objected had I not been dreaming of us living together all day and all the things we'd be able to do then. I glanced in the mirror to the back and saw Tyler staring out the window.
So, I took advantage of Jonas' hand and pushed it up further, looking at him and biting my lip.2
He took no time in sliding my lace panties to the side and sinking his fingers into me, his other hand fisted the wheel, turning his knuckles white. I turned up the music as my breathing became laboured at his touch.
"I love watching what I can do to you Lyla. You're so fucking sexy, and so fucking mine." He whispered at my temple as he drove two fingers deep into me and curled them against my walls, making my mouth fall open in absolute bliss.
He continued the rhythmic heaven until we were home and parked in the driveway. Tyler hopped out unaware of what was transpiring in the front seat and Jonas plunged back into me, his thumb massaging, his fingers moving in and out. I felt my legs start to shake and he pulled away.
"Ah-ah-ah... if I'm not getting off neither are you, naughty girl." He steadied me by gripping my waste and stared at me intensely looking absolutely ravenous.
"We could say you left something at the school. It wouldn't be hard to find somewhere to park Lyla." He dug his fingers into my sides to prompt an answer.
I wanted to, I wanted to more than anything, but my mom was already suspicious of he and I. We needed to lay low for the next couple of weeks.1
"We can't Jonas... my mom was already asking about us this morning. I'm serious, we have to be careful, no sneaking around until this whole Chad thing blows over." I tried to say it as seriously as possible, but it wasn't easy, even as the words left my mouth, I found myself wanting him more as I watched him draw in deep laboured breaths. I let my eyes scan down his body and found that he was hard beneath his dress pants.
"Fuck, Delilah... you're going to kill me baby." He dug a hand through his hair and faked a pained expression. He let his hands drop to my bottom and pulled me across the seat, rubbing his hand over my skirt at my most sensitive spot.
"I'm not kidding Lyla, if I'm not getting off neither are you. Don't even think about touching yourself, neither of us feels good without the other, got it Princess?" He looked at me more seriously and pulled his hand away from me.1
"Y-yes... ok..." I said breathlessly and closed my eyes, not wanting him to stop what he'd been doing.
"Ok... just making sure we're on the same page love." He smiled, giving me a devilish wink and slapped my thigh, before jumping from the truck and making his way to the house, his book bag slung over one shoulder.
I took a second to recompose myself before doing the same.
The rest of the week passed without a hitch. Everything had settled. I knew Chad was likely still in town, I just hoped he had given up. Friday was the final day for my grounding and I was thrilled to have my phone back.
I wasn't surprised to find that my mom had deleted Chad and blocked him from texting me after she thought he had physically attacked me.
I still felt like shit about lying to her, but the truth would have been a much bigger bombshell.2
Jonas had continued his antics, meeting me at my locker just to touch me and tell me how much better things would be if I just let go of my fears, and gave in to him, but I'd held on to my resolve, although it grew weaker by the day.
Jonas was like a drug to me, the more he gave me the more I wanted him. I was nearly insane with lust by Friday, but I refused to give in.
We were together, and it wasn't worth ruining our chance at happiness or our family’s happiness.
We came home from school to my mom in a panic. "I've got the kids packed honey." She yelled from upstairs.
"Ok sweetheart, I've got a hotel booked." My dad yelled back." My mom rounded the staircase, tears strewn down her face. Her eyes swollen from crying.
"Mom, what's wrong? What's going on?" I grabbed her into a hug and she let go, balling into my shoulder.
"It's Grandpa Sylvester honey, he had a heart attack last night... he didn't make it." She squeaked, tears beginning anew and covered her face with her thin hand.1
"Oh mom, I'm so sorry." I comforted, rubbing her shoulder and giving her my most sympathetic look.
I didn't really know my maternal grandparents well, we had only seen them once a year at Christmas until I was seven before both had become too frail to make the trip from New England to Florida. My grandmother had died several years ago and I imagined that this being my mother's last living parent, had absolutely devastated her.
"We're going to New England we have to wrap up the estate after the funeral.
We'll be back next Sunday. I trust you kids can make it to school by yourselves next week." She asked.
"Otherwise, you can all stay with Lorna, I got a hold of her mom and let them know we'd be gone, she's going to keep an eye on things." She forced a smile at me.3
"Of course, mom. We'll be fine." I said, fighting back annoyance that Lorna knew my parents would be out of town. I could only guess what plans she would cook up in their absence.
"I've left a list of numbers for you on the fridge. The top is the place that we'll be staying, you already have our cell numbers. Boys..." she turned to the twins.
"I'm so sorry I'm missing your birthday. I promise when I get back, we'll celebrate. We'll all go to the beach or something." She looked at them and I could tell she really felt awful.
"It's ok, I think we'll manage." Tyler smiled sympathetically, placing a hand on her shoulder, to w
hich she began balling again.
"Ok, ok, we're going." She said, grabbing Tristan's hand as my dad took a toddler in each arm and they headed for the mini-van. I pretended to not notice Jonas staring at me as the van left the driveway and drove up the road out of sight.
"Oh. My. Fucking. God, Princess... you're all mine for a week, just imagine the possibilities." He smirked, sauntering over to me and grabbing me into a lust filled tongue war.
He let his hands slide up my skirt, then into my blouse.
"All fucking mine, with no interruptions." He mused after he pulled away from me.
"I need to decide what I want to do to you first." He raised a brow at me, lifting me by my hips and setting me on the countertop.
"Should I fuck you here?" He asked at my lips, "like this." He spread my legs and pushed himself against me, before abruptly grabbing me and flipping me over so that my legs sat on the floor and my belly was flush with the counter top. "Or should I fuck you like this?" He growled at my ear. His body leaned over me holding me in place.
Suddenly he fisted my hair and gave it a tug, while he thrust himself against my ass, pinning me again while rubbing himself hard against my backside.
A surge of warmth ran through me and I brought my hand back behind his neck pulling him toward me as I raked my nails across the back of his neck.
"Fuck baby, like this it is." He said in a breathless laugh, flipping my skirt up over my back and beginning to unbutton his pants.
A knock sounded at the door interrupting Jonas', scheming, dirty mind and pulling me back to reality.
Tyler stared at us from the doorway, and my cheeks turned a deep crimson that may not have even existed on the colour spectrum.4
"I'll get it." he said, looking dumbfounded and turning for the door.
"Don't mind him Princess...he likes watching, trust me." Jonas said, squeezing my waist and I instantly felt sick.15
"Why would you say that Jonas?" I asked in a disgusted tone.
"I was just joking Lyla, don't get bent out of shape over it sweet heart." he pulled me to him, and I shoved him off, walking toward the door to see who had knocked.