UNLoved: a bay falls high novel, page 12
But his eyes…
He just stared.
Almost like he was confused.
“Kip…”
“There’s a reason I brought you all the way to the top. I know you’re afraid of heights.”
“Who said I was afraid of heights?” I asked.
“I can read it on your face, girl. Stand up and hold my hand. It’s worth it.”
Kip stood up and offered his hand to me.
I took his hand and moved to my feet.
I took a shaky step or two to get to the top of the bleachers to stand next to him.
My right hand clamped down on the railing really hard.
Kip put my left hand to the railing. He put his right hand to my waist, holding tight.
Protective.
“Just look out there,” he whispered. “Look at the view.”
My eyes focused as I stared forward.
And, fine, I had to give it to Kip.
The view was… wow.
That was the only word.
Being so high up in the air, I could see over everything and see right to the ocean.
I couldn’t see the beach or the waves, but I could see the long horizon that was a dark bluish color. Where the land met the water.
“Wow,” I whispered, still reduced to just one word to describe what I was looking at.
“That’s my reaction when I see you, girl,” Kip said.
I turned my head. I pretend to choke. “Now that’s cheap. Sweet. Weak.”
“And it works,” he said. He reached for my cheek and acted as though he was moving a piece of hair out of my face. “Always works.”
“Okay, Kip,” I said. “You lured me here. We’re alone. You showed me what you wanted to. Now what?”
“First off, lured you?” he asked. “That makes me sound bad.”
“Your point?” I asked with a wink.
He laughed.
“Second, that’s not what I wanted to show you. What I have in mind is much… different. It’s perfect. Big. Long. And whether you believe it or not, it’s something I don’t share with many chicks.”
Chicks. How fucking cliché.
Yet his words were burning me up inside.
I felt my cheeks turning red.
“Now… this was just to say hey,” Kip whispered. “See if you would listen to me. And you did.”
“You tricked me.”
“It worked. What’s the difference?”
“There’s a big difference, Kip.”
“Then you can tell me about it. When I steal you tomorrow. Late afternoon. Meet me at the end of your driveway.”
“Are you asking?”
“Fuck no, girl,” Kip said. “I don’t ask. I do. I take. I get. I enjoy.”
Kip stepped back and down a step. Then another. Then another.
“Hey, be careful,” I said, worried he was going to fall.
“See?” he asked with a grin. “Shows how much you care.”
“No,” I said. “I hope you fall. I hope you smash your head and forget who you are. I hope you break your neck!”
“Lies, girl,” Kip said.
He turned and trotted down the bleachers, leaving me up there alone.
When I looked out to the ocean again, my knees started to shake and hit together.
I hated heights.
I hated being alone at such a height.
And I hated that I missed Kip being next to me.
There was just something about the way he looked at me…
It was embarrassing how long it took me to walk down the bleachers. And it also included me texting Gi so I had some kind of distraction. Or at least the knowledge that someone knew where I was in case I fell and hurt myself.
I didn’t fall.
I didn’t hurt myself.
And that was with Gi responding.
I gave her the quick story of why I was alone on the bleachers and she text me back an eggplant emoji. Which was well known for representing a certain part of a guy. For a second, I felt jealousy, wondering if Gi – or Iris – had seen Kip’s… eggplant.
I told myself not to ask a question where the answer would hurt me.
See, Ti, you can do this without self-destruction. Good job!
I walked out of the stadium and toward my SUV only to find it being blocked by another SUV.
I stopped and put my head back, laughing.
“Here we go again,” I whispered as I watched the window roll down.
Pres looked at me and pulled the same sunglasses down the same nose.
I stood there, defiant, curling my lip, not impressed.
He slowly drove forward to show me that someone was in my SUV.
I started to run only to realize it was Barr.
He climbed out of the driver’s seat and shut the door.
He was smoking which meant my SUV would stink like cigarette smoke.
“Jerk,” I called to him.
“Beautiful,” he said back. He dropped the cigarette and walked toward Pres’s SUV.
“What did you do?” I called out.
“Nothing,” he said, without looking back.
He was big, tough, sexy, burly… dammit.
I had Barr and Kip in my head fighting each other.
Honey gold eyes versus bright blue eyes.
And then to make it worse, there was Pres, staring at me through the side mirror of the SUV.
His dark, cold and evil eyes just pushing at me.
He half grinned when Barr got into the SUV.
Then he sped off.
I ripped open the door to my SUV and there was a rose waiting for me on the seat.
Except all the petals had been ripped off and scattered along the seat and the floor.
What did that mean?
Beauty destroyed? Untouched being ripped apart?
I reached for the rose and pricked my finger.
“Fuck,” I growled.
I swiped the rose to the ground, along with any of the petals I could grab.
I got into the driver’s seat and took a deep breath.
This game was getting more and more intense by the minute.
But that was okay.
I still had the biggest surprise of them all just waiting to be revealed.
twelve
There was something to be said when the Rulz were the ones waiting for you.
And I didn’t need anyone to tell me how amazing it was. I could sense it on everyone’s face and I could feel the whatever in the air as I approached them outside BFH.
Barr was finishing his cigarette while Pres leaned against a railing with his arms crossed.
Kip stood forward a couple feet, staring at me as though he had already won their little fucking bet.
The reminder of that bet took my mood and flushed it down an old, stained toilet.
Which was probably a good thing.
I needed the reminder on a daily basis now.
“You broke my heart, love,” Barr said as he dropped the cigarette. And for maybe the first time ever, he stepped on the cigarette. “The fire is out.”
“Just like that, huh?” I asked. “No more fight in you?”
Barr slowly grinned. “You know me. Damn, love, you really know me.”
My eyes moved to Pres. Wearing the same sunglasses, like he did the last couple times I saw him. He just started wearing them too. I had no idea what that meant.
“And you’re so silent,” I said to Pres.
“Thinking, sugar,” he said.
“About what?”
“Moments,” he said. “Just collecting them. Sorting them out.”
“Wow, the badass is tamed,” I said with a laugh.
That was the wrong thing to say.
Pres pushed from the railing and took off his sunglasses. A look in his eyes almost flashed at me and then he was on the move. He stood at the top of the steps, blocking the way for some guy who had his head down.
Shit.
The guy walked right into Pres.
“Bad move, Cade,” Kip said.
The guy – Cade – looked up at Pres. “Fuck.”
“Fuck is right,” Pres said.
He grabbed Cade by the shirt and lifted him. He turned and walked Cade to the railing and threw him against it.
Cade dropped down to one knee and put his hand up. “I’m sorry, Pres. I was checking something.”
“Give me the phone,” Barr ordered.
“Seriously?” I asked.
Pres glanced at me and curled his lip.
“Give him the fucking phone,” Kip growled.
Cade reluctantly held his phone out.
Kip kicked Cade’s wrist so the phone fell to the ground.
Barr stepped forward and slammed his heel down on the screen.
“Oh, shit,” Barr said. “I wasn’t paying attention. Look what I’ve done now.” Barr lifted his foot and slammed it down again. “Oh, I did it again…”
Barr did it three more time before kicking the phone off the steps into the bushes.
“That’s supposed to impress me?” I asked Pres.
Pres closed in on me, putting his body right against mine, but he didn’t touch me. His hands stayed away.
“He’s friends with Jacob,” Pres whispered. “And I think you know what Jacob did. So I’m going to just assume he played a role in that night. And if he did, then we’re taking care of a problem. If he didn’t, then we’re sending a clear message.”
Pres walked toward Cade.
I wasn’t sure how to feel.
But I guess my feelings didn’t mean a thing.
Kip wound up and came down with a hard right fist to Cade’s face.
Cade curled right up and rolled under the railing but not off the steps.
The Rulz then set their sights on me as a bell rang.
Pres grabbed Barr’s shirt and tugged and they walked away first.
Kip touched my cheek with the knuckles that had just smashed against Cade’s face.
He leaned down toward me and kissed my cheek. “I’ll see you later, girl. Can’t wait for it.”
Kip went to tag along with Pres and Barr.
I glanced to my right and saw Cade reaching for the railing. His cheek was bright red and swollen. He looked at me but hurried to turn his head and cover his face.
“What was that about?” Gi asked from my left side.
I hadn’t even seen her show up.
“Hey,” I said.
“Hey to you,” Iris said. “Cade got his ass kicked, huh?”
“He bumped into Pres,” I said.
“Typical,” Gi said.
“Forget Cade,” Iris said. “I want to talk about Kip hitting his lips to your cheek.”
“What about it?” I asked.
Gi motioned toward the door to BFH and we started to walk.
“Nothing to talk about,” I said.
“Bullshit,” Iris said.
“He’s picking you up today, right?” Gi asked.
My stomach did a backflip. I sort of hated that I panicked on the bleachers and ended up texting Gi everything about Kip. So she knew what happened with the note, the bleachers, that Kip wanted to take me somewhere…
“You’re going to fall hard for those blue eyes,” Iris said. “I can sense it on you.”
“Shut up,” I said. “I’m not falling for anything.”
“He’ll probably want to show off his surf moves,” Gi said.
“Then his bedroom moves,” Iris added.
“Have you been there before too?” I snapped at Iris.
Iris hurried to cut me off and grinned. “What if I said yes?”
I stared. I kept the jealousy under control.
I shrugged my shoulders. “Whatever.”
“Yeah, whatever,” Iris said.
“Okay, I have to ask something,” Gi said.
“Ask away,” I said.
“What’s the plan?”
“The plan?” I asked. “I don’t know. Kip said he’s-”
“No, not with Kip,” Gi said. “With you, Ti. I get what you’re thinking here. Going out with them. Thinking you’re messing with them. But they don’t get jealous. You see that, right?”
“Yeah, I see it,” I said.
“Okay… so what happens after you go out with all three? Then what? Just repeat the cycle over and over? How long do you think this could last?”
“I don’t know,” I said.
“I think Gi is right,” Iris said. “I mean that too. Seriously. I figure it this way… you either give it up to one of them or they leave you be. But if they do that, they’ll ruin your reputation.”
“And what reputation is that?” I asked. “I’m just here for a little bit.”
“Are you though?” Gi asked.
“Yeah,” I said. “When my mother…”
I actually thought about that sentence before the rest of it came out.
“Face it, Ti, you’re settled here,” Gi said. “You like it here. You like everything that Claire has given to you and can keep giving you.”
I shook my head. “No. That’s wrong. Because with one breath, I’m gone. And I’m not entitled to anything. Claire isn’t family. So nothing changes.”
“Meaning what?” Iris asked. “You’re going to do what to the Rulz? Make them look stupid for following you around for nothing?”
“Where is this coming from?” I asked. “I thought this was okay.”
“Beth told you it was okay,” Gi said. “You really want to follow her lead?”
“There is no lead to follow,” I said. “I know what I’m doing. Those three assholes are used to getting anything they want. No matter what. I have something they want that they literally can’t have or get. There’s no undoing it. And they can’t hurt me. I’m poor. My mother is a mess. My entire life and world is a mix of lies and broken memories.”
Another bell rang.
We were all officially late.
Which was the norm.
I really didn’t care.
“We sort of like you here,” Gi said. “You fit. This works. I kind of don’t want you to leave.”
“Shit,” I whispered.
I looked at Iris.
“Don’t look at me,” Iris said. “I’ll pack your bags for you. Well, bag… clothes in a shopping bag, right?”
I threw Iris the middle finger.
“Just think about it,” Gi said. “What you’re doing here.”
We all split up to go to class.
That kind of stuff was the last thing I wanted on my mind.
Making friends.
Making best friends.
Thinking about what would happen if I stayed in BFH. Thinking about what would happen if I left BFH. And the harsh reality of what life would be like when Mom got out of rehab. She would need to finish first. And then…
I shut my eyes.
There were too many unknowns to deal with.
I preferred to stick with what I knew.
Kip wanted to take me somewhere private.
And I wasn’t going to turn down the chance to spend time with a blue eyed surfer boy with a crazy bad attitude, who looked at me the way he did.
I just needed to keep my heart protected.
There was now a strange feeling that went through me when I went home. Home of course was still Claire’s house. But it got exhausting to call it that in my head. And truthfully if I didn’t call Claire’s house home then I would be homeless. And I really didn’t want to be the poor, dirty girl with the junkie mother who was now also homeless.
I had no idea how to approach Claire. Or deal with her.
She lied to me.
And it wasn’t some little lie either.
It was a big lie.
She lied about a car accident.
She told me she was in a car accident.
Her face looked like she was in a car accident.
But her car had been untouched… until the next morning…
So I tiptoed through the house only to find Claire in the kitchen.
Sitting with a large cup of coffee in front of her, along with two laptops and a tablet.
She looked at me and smiled. “Hey there.”
“Sorry,” I said. “Am I interrupting?”
“No,” she said. “Just finished a conference call. Bullshit developers. They think me being a woman means I lost my cock and I’m forever trying to find it and lack the same brain power as they do.”
My eyes went wide. “Wow.”
“Yeah,” Claire said. “Come here. Look at something with me quick.”
I approached Claire slowly.
Her face was still roughed up but much better than that first initial shock of seeing the cuts and bruises. Of course she had the help of makeup.
“Sylvester pointed me to this,” Claire said. “But there are no favors in life.”
“What about me?”
“What about you?”
“This is a favor,” I said. “Me being here.”
“No,” Claire said. “It’s my responsibility. I owe you.”
For what, Claire? For what…
Claire pointed to the screen again. “So this building needs to be knocked down. Then we can build on it. I asked Sylvester why he wasn’t interested and he said he had taken on enough for the year. I looked into it. It’s bullshit. He wants to dump this on me. Why? Because there’s background noise to it and he promised someone he’d help. So if I take this, it would get held up and just sit there, draining me little by little.”
I really didn’t know what Claire was talking about.
I nodded anyway.
“Sorry about that,” I said.
“I’m not. That’s how they all are. Parents to kids. Father to son.”
My heart raced a little.
Was she talking about Barr?
“That’s why you have to know who you’re talking to, Tinsley,” Claire said. “No matter what it is in life.”
“Makes sense,” I said. “Hey, did you get your car fixed yet?”
Claire laughed. “Fixed?”
“From the accident…”
“Oh, I’m not getting that fixed,” Claire said. “I just ordered a new one. No big deal.”
She shut the laptops and the tablet and stood up.
My mother had never owned a new vehicle in her entire life. Everything was always one piece of shit car to another. If we didn’t break down on the side of the road at least once a month something was very wrong in life.
