HIDDEN CREEK KISS: a hidden creek high novel, page 12
I felt the color leave my face. “Oh?”
“Come on, Nova. It’s all bullshit. He’s here for something else. Maybe it has to do with Ryland. Or maybe it just has to do with you.”
“Maybe I can’t speak about any of it,” I said.
“Maybe I understand,” Leo said. He then put his hand to my arm. “But being serious for a second, I hope you’re okay. I hope you’re safe. I hope you’re not afraid of anything.”
“Can I ask you something? This is just between us…”
“Nothing ever stays between two people in this town,” Leo said.
“Okay. Anyway… Bay Falls High…”
“That wasn’t a question.”
“But is that an answer?”
“For Ryland?” Leo asked. He shook his head. “I don’t know.”
“That’s where Elijah is going to end up next,” I said.
“I know,” Leo said. “Wes told me what he said to Elijah. We’ll be there. Maybe not for Elijah, but for you. Because you’ll be there too. Because you love him enough to follow him into BFH. And go right up to the Rulz and cause problems.”
“I just wish one time things would be calm enough to enjoy something,” I said.
Leo grinned and then turned his head. “So much for that.”
“What?”
I quickly turned.
I saw Britt, Carly, Ashley, and Lacy all standing near Kailey, Charlotte, Aira, and Emma.
Better yet…
Emma was nose to nose with Carly.
* * *
I had no idea what the deal was and I knew it wasn’t my business.
Of everyone standing there, Britt probably mattered most to me.
And inside my gut, it was a twisted knot of feelings.
Bad enough I had the entire Elijah and Wes situation sitting like fire, now I got to witness my old friends and new friends facing off like they were going to seriously fight each other.
“What’s going on here?” I asked.
“Hey, bitch,” Britt said.
She cut between Emma and Carly like they weren’t there.
We hugged and Britt slipped her hand into mine.
Aira looked at me and curled her lip.
“Britt’s like my oldest friend,” I said. “Is there a problem?”
“I named her boy toy,” Britt said.
Nobody said a word.
I turned my head to Britt. I whispered, “What is this?”
“Not sure,” Britt whispered back. “I just came to check up on you. Say hey. Wanted to know if you wanted to hit the waves later. Just you and me though.”
Ashley and Lacy stood with their left legs bent, arms crossed, perfect hair perfectly placed over their shoulders. Like bimbo statues.
“I don’t need to move,” Carly said to Emma.
“Neither do I,” Emma said.
“You realize we were here first,” Charlotte said.
“Don’t see your names on anything,” Ashley said.
“Not even the hottie right there,” Lacy said as she blew a kiss toward Flynn.
His eyes went wide.
A flicker of a smile crept across his face but he fought it off.
“Skinny skank bitches,” Charlotte said. “You smell of STDs.”
“As your guy keeps staring at us,” Lacy said. “Wondering where he can stick it first…”
“And your answer is probably the same as you tell every guy you meet,” Kailey said. “Anywhere.”
“Looking for a little pretend love,” Aira said. “Your Daddy must have abandoned you, huh?”
“Better than trying to kill me,” Ashley said.
Aira jumped forward.
Wes got his hands to her waist. “Not worth it, darling.” Wes looked back at me. “If these are yours, can you tell them to leave?”
I shrugged my shoulders. “I… uh…”
I looked down at Britt holding my hand.
Fuck.
Carly finally looked at me. “You just take what you want, don’t you?”
“Me?” I asked.
“Yeah, you. You just cut your way back in. Hang with everyone. Break my cousin’s heart. Then walk back to your other friends. Go fuck the guy that broke your heart. Who the hell are you, Nova?”
“Who the hell are you?” I asked Carly. “I didn’t do a thing with or to Conor.”
“You used him,” Carly said.
“Aw, that’s sweet,” Emma said. “You’re defending your cousin. Something going on there? I mean, that’s really weird shit if so…”
“Fuck off, whore,” Carly said.
She nudged into Emma.
I sucked in a breath.
Emma had two handfuls of Carly’s hair and had her on the ground in a second.
“Oh fuck,” Britt whispered to me. “She’s good.”
“Just hope she doesn’t get her baseball bat,” I said.
Britt and I started to laugh.
Ashley and Lacy started stepping back as Aira and Charlotte moved in on them.
Wes ran a hand through his hair, knowing he wasn’t going to be able to stop Aira.
They were saved by the sight of Principal Henders.
Staring all of us down.
“Get up, cunt,” Emma growled to Carly.
Emma then looked at Principal Henders and smiled big and waved.
“She fell!” Emma yelled. “Tripped right over her own two feet! How funny!”
Principal Henders didn’t laugh.
He just watched as Carly got to her feet.
Britt let go of my hand. “Don’t let this stuff ruin anything.”
“Then don’t go with them,” I said. “Screw them. Hang with us.”
“I’ll see you later for some waves,” Britt said. She waved to everyone else. “Hope everyone else has a calm day.”
She caught up to Carly and I watched Carly look at her, pissed off.
“What?” Britt snapped at her. “You want to act like a bitch, that’s on you. I don’t care what’s going on, Nova’s my best friend.”
I smiled.
Britt was a good friend. Crazy. Strange. But a good friend.
“Do I want to know what that was?” Wes asked.
“I don’t even know what that was,” I said.
“That bitch comes around again and I’m finishing what I started,” Emma said. “She just fucking walks up to us and starts asking where the slut is. Meaning you, Nova.”
I shook my head. “She’s pissed over Conor.”
“Again, the cousin thing is weird,” Kailey said.
“I’ll take on those two skinny whores myself,” Charlotte said.
“You’re so much hotter than them,” Flynn said.
Charlotte look at him. “Oh, so they’re hot?”
“No. You’re hotter.”
“Which means they’re hot,” Charlotte yelled at Flynn.
“No… not hot hot… like…”
Leo looked at me. “Open mouth, insert foot.”
“More like How Many Times Was He Dropped On His Head As A Baby?” I replied.
“Good one,” Leo said.
“Why was that one holding your hand?” Wes asked me.
“Don’t question me,” I said. “I’m not your girlfriend.”
“What does that mean?” Aira asked. “He doesn’t question me.”
“Everyone calm down for a second,” Kailey said. “Dammit.”
“It was weird to me,” Wes said.
“Did it get you a little hard?” I asked.
“Hey!” Aira snapped.
“Christ, Nova,” Emma said, her eyes wide.
“What?” I asked. I swallowed hard. Okay, fine, it was my fucking fault. “They’re… I don’t know. Old friends. Okay? Britt and I have known each other forever. She hangs out with the rest of the them. I hadn’t talked to Britt in a long time. In case you all forgot, I’ve had a fucked up year. With all of it being hidden…”
Aira looked at Wes.
He turned and walked away, running his hand through his hair.
“We know,” Kailey said.
“Look, Carly’s pissed at me. I’m sorry she started with you all. Ashley and Lacy are harmless. Seriously. They spend more time on their back than their feet. I can’t stand them. But Britt? She’s the best. The best ever. We grew apart but we started talking again. There’s a lot I have to tell her. She never takes sides. It’s just… Britt.”
“Just Britt,” Kailey said.
“Maybe next time tell her to leave the cunts at home,” Emma said.
“I kind of want you to take them on,” Leo said.
I looked at him. “I thought you were with me on this stuff?”
“Sorry,” he said. “Dirty jokes irritate me right now, but a good chick fight…”
“Call me a chick again and watch what happens,” Emma warned.
Leo put his hands up. “Say no more.”
“I’m sorry about that,” I said. “I had no idea that was going to happen.”
“Don’t worry about it,” Emma said. “I’m going back to class.”
Everyone slowly started to do their own thing.
Charlotte punched Flynn and he put his arm around her and she punched him again.
Aira went to Wes and rubbed his back. He looked at her and grinned, putting his arm around her.
Emma and Kailey walked away together with Emma punching the air, explaining what she had wanted to do to Carly.
That left me alone with Leo.
“Don’t worry about them,” Leo said. “It’s all a fucking mess right now anyway.”
“Yeah. It always is, Leo.”
“I know,” he said. He nudged his arm into me. “At least you have the waves, right?”
I laughed.
It was short-lived though.
I guess I was going to forever be the Surfer Girl.
* * *
I stood with my board in the sand and watched, wide eyed, smiling as Britt took on a wave and moved so beautifully perfect with it, you’d never know she had been hurt.
Britt was made to surf.
Her forever tan was completely unfair bullshit if you asked me, but that was how things worked in life. The same with her dark, dark eyes, and just the way she always looked. It was impossible for her to not to look stunning. Made for the water. Always happy and ready for an adventure. All of that came directly from her parents though. They were fun and outgoing too.
Britt grabbed her board from the water and charged toward me.
“That was wild,” I said.
“You’re next,” she said. “Go. Now. They’re good.”
I wasn’t going to argue that.
I ran into the ocean with a smile so big on my face it hurt. I paddled my board out and turned, seeing Britt on the shore.
It reminded me of when we were younger. Even when we hit that certain age and things changed and boys were suddenly cute, we always took to the ocean together. And even when Britt got her first boyfriend, she never bailed on me with surfing. And there was no way guys were allowed to get involved either.
Except for summer.
That was one time when the rules were bent.
Because of Elijah.
I missed a wave because I was lost in thought and Britt cupped her hands around her mouth.
“Are you afraid?” she yelled.
“No,” I yelled back, smiling.
That was our thing. Before doing something crazy or dangerous we would ask one another if we were afraid. And the answer was always no.
I waited for the next wave and got on top of it.
My balance was a little messy for a couple of seconds but I collected myself and took the wave to shore.
When I stepped off the board, I put my arms out and nodded.
Britt ran toward me and hugged me.
“That was fucking sick,” she said.
I laughed.
She laughed.
She broke the hug and grabbed my face. “You never told me about what was happening at home.”
“I know.”
“Shit, Nova.”
“Shit,” I whispered.
She put her forehead to mine. “I won’t say sorry because it’ll just piss you off. But…”
“But what?” I asked.
“I need to know everything,” she said. “Everything. I want us to be what we were. Best friends. Forever friends.”
“We are,” I said. “Everything got messed up. For so many reasons. And today made it worse…”
“Don’t worry about anyone else,” Britt said. “Carly has this dream of you and Conor together. She built you up to him. He’s pissed at her. Who cares. Ashley and Lacy? Whatever.”
“They’re your friends,” I said.
“You’re my friend, Nova. Anyone else is just there.”
I shut my eyes and smiled. “I wore everything so hard, Britt. The summers. The breakups. What was happening at home. Then you were traveling. You got hurt.”
“Fuck it,” Britt said. “It’s just time. We lost time. We have time. It’s just time.”
“Just time,” I said.
We hugged each other again.
The sound of the ocean next to us.
Wet from the water after surfing.
The only thing that could make it better was what was walking down the beach toward me.
“Elijah is here,” I whispered.
“Oh, Summer Boy,” she whispered back. “The one who broke all our rules.”
“Tell me you don’t hate him too,” I said.
“Not a chance,” she said.
Elijah finished his cigarette and closed in on me.
At the last second, Britt jumped in front of me and slapped Elijah across the face.
“What the hell?” I asked her.
“I don’t hate him,” she said. “I’m mad about that letter he left you with though.”
Elijah rubbed his cheek and lifted his eyebrow. “Nice to see you too, Britt.”
“Don’t even break her heart again, dude,” she said. “Or I’ll break you.”
She put her finger to Elijah’s nose and stared for a few seconds before walking away.
She looked back at me and winked.
“Thanks,” I called out.
She waved, got her board, and walked away for good.
Elijah rubbed his cheek some more. “Forgot how pleasant Britt was.”
“She’s the best,” I said with a grin.
“Heard she caused a problem with Wes’s crew.”
“I don’t want to talk about it,” I said.
“Looks like you’re going to have to choose sides soon, babe,” he said. “Too many fights.”
“Funny how the fights only started when you showed up.”
“Which means I’m in the right place,” he said.
“Nothing I can do could make you leave.”
“Never,” Elijah said. “I’m here for forever. And I’m here for you.”
“Elijah…”
He kissed my cheek and moved away from me, leaving me lingering for more of him.
He lifted my board out of the water and grinned at me.
“And I’m also here for the surf.”
Chapter 11
Elijah
I put my coffee down on the metal table.
There was something about the little, greasy place that gave you regular coffee mugs that you’d find in a house. The sound of the porcelain clanking against the metal.
It was well past the normal hours of breakfast time, but I didn’t operate on normal hours. I didn’t operate on any hours for that matter. Time was just time and nothing more or less. If you had time, enjoy it. If you were out of time, then oh well.
Then again, as I watched Nova sitting at the metal table, I started to rethink the whole time thing. Nova and I stole time together. We had set hours, days, and weeks together. It worked then. But there was no way it would work now.
I wanted all the time I could get.
All the goddamn time.
Wes and Aira showed up a few minutes late.
The tension was instant, as expected.
Nova looked back at me and swallowed hard.
Her eyes begged me not to attack Wes.
I sat on the metal railing behind the metal table.
I winked at her.
It wasn’t a promise that I wouldn’t hit Wes, but a promise that I would do my best to keep things calm and under control.
Nova got out of her seat to hug Aira.
Wes then touched her arm and nodded.
Jealousy hit me but I chased it away as fast as I could.
I wasn’t jealous that Wes touched Nova. I was jealous because Wes got to know her. He got some of that time that I was just thinking about.
Wes finally got around to looking at me.
He gave a nod.
I gave a wave.
Nova and Aira stood side by side, waiting for something to happen.
I pointed to the table. “Have a seat.”
“I’m good standing,” Wes replied.
“Okay then,” I said. I jumped off the railing so I was standing too.
Wes stayed on his side of the table. I stayed on my side of the table.
“Do you have a plan for this?” I asked him.
“I’ve got something in mind,” he said.
“Can we cut through the bullshit and get there then? Or do you want to throw a few punches at each other to lighten the mood?”
Wes shrugged his shoulders. “I’m never going to back down from a fight.”
“Stop,” Nova yelled. “Both of you. Assholes. Complete fucking assholes.”
“She’s right,” Aira said. “You both are assholes. And we’re the ones who are going to get hurt in all of this.”
Wes and I looked at each other again.
“Does this mean we have to hug now?” I asked Wes.
“I promise, Elijah, if you come near me, I will punch you,” Wes said.
“Damn,” I said. “I was hoping to get some of that love that Aira says is so good.”
“Elijah,” Nova said. “Really?”
I laughed. “I’m just being honest here.”
Wes folded his arms. “Do you want to go talk to BFH or not?”
“You know I do. That’s why you’re here. That’s why I’m here.”
