A/N: Um, the story is now edited, and I have my beta, angel and effects, to thank for the great job she did! You can now read it with not mistakes in the way, lol.
I'd also like to thank everyone who dropped a comment. I can't tell you how happy I am that you guys liked it!
I've been playing with the idea of writing a chapter dealing with the aftermath of the revelation, but I not sure when or if I'm going to go through with it.
As the summary suggests this is a ONE-SHOT. I don't really know how it happened, but honestly that short story just wrote itself. It wasn't planned. I just started experimenting in writing something a little angsty and fluffy and this came out. It's rated T because I don't think there is anything explicit in there (although it's the first time I write even light smut, so if you think I should change it tell me so).
Those who read it please let me know what you think, even if it is just a single word. Anyway, enjoy!
Till next time, :-)
I rested my head against the palm of my head and tapped my pencil impatiently on the once white desk (which had taken on a dull beige color because of all the writing and dirt) as I let out a heavy sigh.
I shifted my eyes to the clock hanging just above the blackboard and then back to the tall, scrawny teacher.
His lips were moving, but no sound was coming out. Not to me anyway. I was too busy staring at the thick, black-framed glasses hanging dangerously close on the bridge of his nose. They were so big that I was sure if we took a measuring scale to them, they'd come out heavier than the teacher himself. I was surprised he hadn't bent under their weight yet. Strong man he is. He and Atlas. Right…
I glanced back at the clock to discover that only a minute had dragged by since my last check. Ten more minutes of slow death left.
History has to be the most boring class ever. Don't get me wrong, I love History. I just hate it when somebody forces me to learn specific bits. I prefer to do it on my own, thank you very much. Give me Math, Physics, Biology, hell even Chemistry and I'm your girl, but History? No. I might get straight A's in aforementioned subject (as well as any other subject I take, being the proud nerd that I am) but Lord knows I have to keep from pulling my freaking hair out while in this class.
And it appears that I'm not the only one here. Half of the class was already asleep, while the other half was either gazing longingly outside the window at the sunny weather, or passing secret notes that everybody knew about but the teacher.
"Ms. Wyndham?" a soft male voice that could never fail to cause goosebumps to break out on my skin whispered from behind me, pulling me out of my thoughts.
Adrian Collins.
Every high school has its own Golden Boy. The one who gets elected President because his intelligent, witty personality and charming, seductive nature makes it impossible not to like. A boy that everybody cheers for, for his position as the captain of the Basketball team, and that was well due because when he stepped onto the court, it became his. His confident, skillful movements made him the King to his Pawns. The leader that everybody counted on to lead our team to victory. A boy who'd been crowned Prom King because of his popularity and dazzling good looks.
Adrian was our Golden Boy. Standing tall at 6.2 feet, with a toned body that I so many times dreamed of touching. Messy, dark brown hair that my hands begged to get buried into. Lime green eyes that I wanted to stare into until they darkened with passion and those soft lips that often curved into a heart-melting, mischievous smile that I so longed to kiss.
I allowed a small smile to graze my lips and leaned back on my chair, so much as not to draw any suspicion.
"Yes Mr. Collins?" I acknowledged.
"How was your break? I haven't seen you in two weeks." Slight melancholy was etched into his voice.
"Interesting," I replied cryptically, "but I'm sure it wasn't as much so as your trip in Africa."
"It was… lonely. Adventurous, but lonely," he responded in a low voice and it took all of my self-control not to jump from my seat, tackle him to the ground and shower him with kisses.
"So… interesting, huh?" he asked a few seconds later, and I could imagine him raising one dark eyebrow.
I nodded.
"And why is that so?" he continued, me being glad that our teacher was too concentrated on his own speech to notice us.
"Oh, I just met this guy."
"Really?" he asked, the sudden high pitch of his voice betraying the otherwise I-don't-mind-at-all tone.
"Yes, his name is Bobby and we had wild, steamy sex everyday for about a week and a half," I said with a shrug.
He sighed in relief, visibly relaxing when he realized that I was just messing with him, and I put a hand over my mouth to hide the stupid grin that spread across my face.
He was so adorable, and even more so when he was jealous.
And he was all mine.
Mine to touch, to kiss, to tease and to play.
Sometimes, I wonder when I'll wake up from my dream, only to be crashed by the harsh reality of the situation; because in this 'dream', the cliché of the nerdy girl and popular jock falling in love did happen. And it felt surreal. It felt like I'd wake up any second and nothing whatsoever related to this had ever happened.
But if everything was a fragment of my imagination, then I never wanted to wake up.
Because even if the feelings that coursed through my body when he touched me were so strong that it almost hurt, I wouldn't have it any other way.
Because the looks of adoration and love he gave me when nobody was watching made me feel powerful and special.
Because he made me see what it was like to feel things I've never experienced before.
And because he was there.
Even after I gave and shared things with him that I'd never shared with anyone else before, when anybody of this age would have left after having gotten what they wanted, he stayed.
And if anything, we became closer.
I trusted him and he didn't prove me wrong in my decision.
But I was scared, because there were still things that stood in our way.
"Hey, is anybody in there?" he asked with amusement.
"Oh, um… sorry, I zoned out a little I guess," I admitted sheepishly.
"Thinking about me, I hope," he whispered in that sexy voice that always drove me crazy.
I rolled my eyes, although he couldn't see me. "Of course."
"I've missed you," he said softly after a moment of silence.
"I've missed you too," I said back, somewhat choked.
"When am I going to see you?" he asked with urgency in his voice.
"You're seeing me now," I said smartly.
I'm sure he rolled his eyes. "Just the two of us, Etta," he explained impatiently, although he knew that I understood what he meant in the first place.
"After school," I replied and tensed when he leaned dangerously close to me. "Adrian-" I started, but he ignored me.
"School ends in more than five hours and I want to be alone with you. I want to touch you and kiss you again. I want to feel you," he confessed almost desperately.
I glanced around the room nervously to see if we had drawn any attention so far. We hadn't so far, fortunately.
"Adrian, please, more than twenty people are in this classroom. Someone's bound to notice," I tried to reason. He shouldn't stand so close to me…
"Those last few weeks without you drove me fucking insane. Do you think I give a damn if anyone notices?" he whispered harshly.
I briefly closed my eyes and took a deep breath. "Adrian, please don't."
"All I want is to be with you. What's so bad about that?" he asked like a wounded little kid.
I swallowed the lump in my throat. "We've been through this before. I don't want-"
"Right, right, I'm sorry. Don't worry about it." He said, leaning back in his chair and acting cool, but the evident distress in his words caused my heart to clench painfully. I was thankful that I wasn't face-to-face with him, because if I saw any sorrow clouding those brilliant bright eyes, I didn't know what I would have done.
"Adrian-" I tried again, only to be cut off by the shrill sound of the bell signaling the end of class.
He silently stood up and packed his things, before he slid his backpack over one shoulder and put one hand in the front pocket of his blue jeans.
"I have basketball practice. I'll see you later." He said, low enough for only me to hear.
I just nodded my head, unable to trust my voice. I slumped deeper in my seat, his back being the last thing I saw before he disappeared out of my sight.
"And don't forget, kids, I want these exercises done by Wednesday!" Mrs. Roseland, our Math teacher, called out, so that she could be heard over the noise of the students hastily making their way to the exit.
I got my own things and waited until I was the last one to leave, knowing how aggressive my fellow classmates could get when the bell signaled their freedom.
I strode down the busy hallway in search of my locker, then stopped dead in my tracks when I saw a couple of Adrian's friends laughing hysterically (more than likely about something stupid) only a few feet away from my destination.
'Ignore them and they'll go away,' I thought.
I quietly tried to open my locker and deposit my books, but the stubborn thing just wouldn't listen. After a few hard pounds, it finally succumbed to my silent pleas.
"Well, well, well, what do we have here?" a sneering, annoying voice inquired from beside me.
Great, just great. Just my luck.
I slammed the door of my locker quite hard, imagining that the jerk's head was in the space between the locker and its door. Ignoring him, I turned around to leave, but he stood in front of me and effectively blocked my way.
"You want something, Adams?" I asked rudely.
"Is that a way to greet a friend?" he pouted.
"You're not my friend," I said in an icy voice.
"Oh, you better believe I am, because it appears that I'm the only one willing to spend some of his time with you lovey," he retorted with a venomous smile.
I curled my hands into fists, my knuckles turning white from the pressure. I was not going to let him get through to me.
"Well please, don't let me distract you from your precious life," I said with a fake smile, willing for every God in the universe to make him disappear.
"Be glad that someone's paying attention to you; even if it's a waste of time."
"Come on man, she's not worth it. It's lunch time and I'm hungry," another one of the jackasses whined.
"See?" he told me cheekily. "I'll see you around, sweetums."
"Yeah, I can't wait." I said dryly, after he turned around to leave.
I wasn't feeling hungry so I decided to spend my lunch break in the library reading a book. At least there nobody will bother me. Not that people would want to anyway…
I didn't get to cover more than ten meters down the hall when I let out a little yelp of surprise as a strong hand snaked around my elbow and pulled me inside an empty, semi-dark room, closing the door when I was inside.
Lime green eyes was the only thing I managed to get a glimpse of before I got backed against the cold wall, warm lips covering my own in a frenzy, desperate kiss. His lips moved greedily and predatorily against mine and I found myself kissing him back with the same passion. He continued his assault with his mouth as his left hand, previously resting firmly on my hips, found its way up to trace the outline of my breast, then up my neck until it was buried in my hair, pulling at the elastic band that kept my honey blond hair in a messy ponytail.
How much I'd longed for this. Only two weeks we were apart, but damn, it felt so much longer. Not a day had gone by without my thinking about his smile, his eyes, the feeling of his soft skin against mine and the sweet taste of his lips. It might be unhealthy to do so but I can't stop it; nor do I want to. I might suffer when he's not beside me, but the reward I get when he is is superior to everything else.
I molded my body to his, pressing it tightly against him in an attempt to feel his hard body as close to mine as possible. He pushed me back against the wall again, leaving zero space between us. Our hips were pressed together and when he grinded his own against mine, the feeling of his growing arousal sent waves of pleasure down to my lower stomach which caused me to gasp against his mouth.
He took the opportunity to deepen the kiss as he skillfully slipped his tongue inside my mouth, the mild taste of chocolate invading my senses. My heart began to beat even quicker, if that was possible, when he ran the tip of his tongue teasingly along the roof of my mouth and then curled it around mine sensually.
Oh, did he know what to do to make me weak in the knees.
My hands found their way under his shirt in a desperate need to feel the velvety skin that I knew very well was lying underneath the thin material. At the feeling of my fingers, the tight muscles of his flat abdomen contracted, and when my nails trailed up his toned upper torso to graze the already hard buds of his nipples, a groan of satisfaction escaped his lips.
I let out a whimper of protest when he tore his mouth from mine, then let out a soft sigh when he used the hand still tangled in my hair to gently tug my head and plant his lips on my neck, close to my ear, leaving hungry kisses as I continued to rub my hands up and down his chest.
"You little minx," he muttered before he sucked hard on the skin and then ran his tongue over it soothingly, an action that caused me to shudder in his arms.
He had once told me that I was a minx in disguise. I'd looked at him wearily at that time, contemplating whether I should feel good or embarrassed of that fact. He had sensed my worry and reassured me that for him, the fact that a quiet girl like me could turn wild behind closed doors (something that caused me to blush furiously) was a lethal combination; furthermore, it was a boost to his male ego knowing that he was the one who could get it out of me and the only one privileged to take advantage of it.
"I thought we said after school," I managed to say, my voice coming out in ragged breaths.
"I told you that's too long," he replied as he kept nipping and licking my neck and ear. "I want you," he whispered huskily.
"I want you now," he repeated, when I didn't say anything.
I sighed inwardly. 'And I want you, too', I wanted to say, but this was neither the place nor the time, a logical voice buried deep in the back of my head told me.
"Adrian, we can't do this right here," I protested as I half-heartedly pushed him away, dropping my hands from under his shirt.
"I can't wait anymore," he told me, looking deep into my eyes.
"We're in a classroom."
"I don't care," he said stubbornly as he leaned down to capture my lips again.
"Well, I do!" I exclaimed, pushing him away again and keeping my hands firmly against his chest. "Someone might get in here and see us!"
He stiffened at my words, then let me go and took a step back. He ran his hand through his already messy hair frustratingly. "It always comes back to this, doesn't it?" he asked bitterly.
"What are you talking about?"
"You know what I'm talking about, Etta," he grumbled.
"You're mad at me because I won't have sex with you in a classroom?" I asked with narrowed eyes, in a failed attempt to cover the fact that I knew indeed what the real problem was.
"No! This, Etta!" he waved a hand frantically around us and I flinched at the sudden anger and agitation in his voice. "I'm talking about this! About always having to watch our back! Always having to hide from everyone! Always being afraid that someone might see us or walk in on us! That we have to have a fucking schedule of places and times we can meet because someone might find out! And all this because you don't want anyone to know that we're together!"
"Adrian you don't understand-"
"No," he shook his head sadly. "No, I don't. I thought I did. I thought that it was natural because you were new to this. I thought that since I was your first relationship, you'd just need time to adjust to everything and I respected that. I was patient. I didn't push you. But it's been almost a year, Etta. A whole damn year!"
"You know that this isn't just it," I told him, unshed tears burning my eyes. "You know what everyone will think of you if they knew, especially your friends. They hate me and I don't want them to give you a hard time just because you're with someone like me. Everybody loves you and if they find out, they'll start looking at you weirdly and think that you've lost your mind."
"And I already told you that I don't care!" he replied, his jaw clenched tightly, "I don't give a rat's ass about their opinion! Stop putting yourself down like this! They're not better that you! Most of these people aren't my friends anyway and those who truly are will respect my decision! I know that, and you know that, so stop blaming it on me! This isn't about me, this is about you, isn't it? You're scared about yourself. You're afraid that you'll become the center of everyone's attention if everything comes out. That you'll lose your quiet, low profile life and you won't know how to handle it. Am I right?"
I cast my eyes downwards and he took it as a yes when he sighed heavily.
"I can't do this anymore," he said resignedly, his voice just above a whisper.
I snapped my eyes back to his, a tear rolling down my cheek. "What?" I whispered, scared of the meaning behind his words.
"I'm tired of playing hide and seek all the time. I love you, I really do, but this is killing me. You don't get how much it hurts me when people don't treat you well and how useless I feel when I can't be there to protect you because you won't let me. How many times have I just wanted to be close to you, and then I remember that I can't because we're in public and that you won't let me?"
"Adrian, please…" I pleaded but he shook his head again.
"I'm not doing this anymore. I refuse to," he said with a finality that made me choke out a sob. "We're not doing anything wrong, and if you think that what we have isn't important enough for you to forget everything else, then there's nothing I can do," he finished before he unlocked the door and disappeared for the second time in a day, only this time without the usual promise for a later meeting.
I stood there numbly, trying to comprehend everything that had been said between us in the last few minutes. The truth of his words scared me. I was scared that people wouldn't hesitate to badmouth me and tell me that I didn't deserve him; and that I'd believe them. That he'd soon realize his mistake and leave me; and I'd believe them. I was afraid that if everyone found out, my little dream world would be shattered.
Though I shouldn't, another voice told me.
Because he never, ever gave me a reason to doubt him.
Despite all my insecurities and craziness, he'd stayed beside me, always reminding me of how much I meant to him.
And God, he meant the world to me too. How couldn't he when he'd practically changed my life for the better?
'I'll be damned if I let him get away like this,' I thought sternly to myself. He'd taught me to be act riskier and this was one risk I absolutely had to take.
Because if I didn't, I'd lose him; and I couldn't bear that.
With that, I left the empty classroom and took long, purposeful strides down the hall to where I knew he would be.
To where the majority of the school would be.
The lunch room.
I stood in front of the dark red double doors, taking a few deep breaths before opening the doors and stepping inside.
A few students turned their heads at the new arrival and then back to what they were doing when they saw that it was nothing interesting.
'Wait a few minutes and you'll see interesting,' I thought sarcastically.
I looked around the room for the familiar table where the 'elites' of our school were always gathered.
I found it and also noticed Adrian's profile. I couldn't see him clearly, but I could tell that he had his hands in his hair, nodding at something one of his jerk/friends had told him.
Could I do what I was thinking of doing?
I had to.
I hadn't realized before how selfish it was of me not to let him have the normal relationship he was asking for. I hadn't realized that it was hurting him.
I almost laughed out loud at the irony of the situation. Normally, in a similar occasion, the nerdy girl would be the one asking for the truth to come out while the popular guy would object. It was the other way around here. How twisted life can be, huh?
I took a few more long breaths and nodded to myself decisively.
I'm doing it.
What I was about to do might seem over the top, but I had to let him know that he meant so much to me, and that I was willing to do anything to have him back again.
So, I started walking through the tables of people, focusing only on my target. As I approached, people sitting at his table started to become aware of my presence and stared with raised eyebrows.
Adrian's gaze was still on the table, seeming oblivious to his surroundings, even when people around him started whispering maniacally.
The reason for their whisperings? Me.
Why? Because I was currently ignoring the protests of the people sitting around the table and looking at me like I've grown two heads, because I'd pushed myself up and was standing on top of it.
Yes, on top of the table.
"What do you think you're doing, you freak?" one of the preppy girls exclaimed incredulously.
"I knew she was crazy," another one stated.
"Way to grab my attention, sweetums," Adams said in a smug voice and I rolled my eyes.
Everybody's attention was on the honey blond haired girl that was standing, for what appeared to be no reason, on a table in the middle of a room that was packed with students.
My impatient foot tapping seemed to grab Adrian's attention, who, at the realization of what the commotion was all about, did a double take and almost fell off his seat from surprise. He stared at me speechlessly, his mouth hanging open in shock.
He looked around uncertainly and then back at me again. "What are you doing?" he whispered, stunned.
"What does it look like?" I asked with a grin as I stretched a hand out to him.
He looked at it with a frown for a couple of seconds until it dawned on him. His eyes immediately lit up like a child who'd just seen Santa.
His lips curved into a brilliant smile, making my heart melt on the spot. If I knew that this was all it took to make him happy, I wouldn't have waited for so long.
"So are you coming or what?" I asked with the same grin. His smile was contagious.
"What the hell is going on man?" Adams asked him, irritated that I apparently wasn't there for him, as he tended to think so.
Adrian ignored him and gladly took my offering hand, joining me on the table. His eyes never left mine as he stood in front of me, waiting, everyone else watching us in stunned silence.
I smiled up at him lovingly and cradled his handsome face in my hands, tracing his cheeks with my thumbs.
"I can't tell you how sorry I am for being so self-centered," I told him honestly. "For being so inconsiderate and blind to how you felt that I didn't even realize that I was hurting you. I never meant to do that intentionally, I swear. I was so wrapped up in us, I thought that we had was perfect the way it was, you know? I thought that if we let people know, they would eventually tear us apart and I'd lose you. I know it might sound stupid to you but that's how I felt. And I can't," I shook my head frantically. "I can't lose you."
He put his hands on my hips and pulled me close to him. "You're not going to lose me," he said firmly. "You can try if you want, but you won't succeed," he added with a smile and I let out a half laugh, half sob.
He gave me a questioning glance and barely a second after my nod of permission, his lips covered mine in a passionate kiss that left me breathless, ignoring the gasps and exclamations of surprise around us.
It actually felt good, I suddenly realized. Being out in the open, that is. There were advantages to people knowing, and one of them was that everybody now knew that this, in all aspects, gorgeous person was mine and mine only.
"When I said that I didn't want to hide anymore, I wasn't particularly thinking of going that far," he smiled after we broke apart, pointing to the outrageous position we were in. "But I'm happy because now I can do this," he said, leaving little pecks on my lips. "Do you think we can go back to the classroom and finish what we started?" he asked with a mischievous glint in his eyes.
I rolled my eyes and hit him playfully. "You're unbelievable."
"Mmmhmm, you've told me before," he reminded me, memories flashing through my mind and causing my cheeks to burn with embarrassment. "And you will again, if you let me do what I'm suggesting," he smiled smugly.
"Adrian…" I whined and dropped my head on his shoulder.
"Come on, you know you love me."
"I do." I nodded. "I love you."
"Ditto, sweetie," he whispered in my ear. "Ditto."