Ember

  “We’ve already discussed this. No, you don’t,” she said proud.

  “Asia should have never…” I continued but she cut me off with a glare. Her fingers dug into my stomach with a gentle force. She shook her head in disapproval.

  “She has nothing to do with you and I. She has nothing to do with this night.” Her eyes held me hostage as her cool hands searched my chest.

  “I understand.” At least I understood a little.

  “Tonight is about the truth Max. Our truth.” She paused long enough for me to heat up again.

  “Our truth?” Okay…I didn’t understand.

  “I already told you that I was falling for you and I think that scared you a little.” More like a lot.

  “It scares me too.” She slowly pulled away from me but made sure our hands stayed locked together.

  “The way I feel about you is stronger than anything I have ever felt before but I am not going to lie to you.” She stopped and took a deep breath. “Your abilities terrify me.”

  “Oh,” I said sheepishly. Terrify is a pretty bold word. I looked out over the water and felt trapped. I wanted to run but I couldn’t now. I wanted Sam’s acceptance but now I felt like a monster.

  “Part of me wants to run from you,” she continued. Great…here come the torches and pitch forks. My chest pounded like a drum signaling an over load, as it filled with more heat. She pretended not to notice.

  “And part of me wants to embrace you and never let go, no matter how much you burn,” she whimpered.

  “I would never hurt you Sam. Not like that. You have to know that.”

  “And that’s why this night is so important.” Her hands trembled. “I want to show you just how important.”

  Her words were direct. I on the other hand stood clueless, with the water gently swishing around my waist. Her body pushed up against mine and she pulled my head down and kissed me softly. When she was finished she grabbed my left hand and led me back to the beach.

  We both stood together so closely as our wet bodies filled with goose bumps from the chilling breeze. This time I kissed her and she shivered in my arms. I let my body heat up enough to gently warm us both. The water on our skin disappeared and our hair started to dry slowly. Our bodies were warm again when she locked her arms around me. She kissed me with everything she had and when I finally thought we would need to take a breath, she kissed me even harder. My core temperature was off the charts now but she only increased her assault. My walls were crumbling fast.

  “Sam…” It took all of my might to pull my lips away from her. “This is a mistake.”

  I knew it was crazy to want to stop this heaven but things were moving fast now. As much as my young hormone driven body wanted this, I had to be smart about the next step. With my abilities she could get hurt. Her face went still as her arms dropped to her sides. Her soft skin pulled away from mine and I swear my body actually ached when she did.

  “You’re right,” she said coldly. The waves grew behind us with a fizzling crash. Her hair danced around her shoulders as if it was taunting me to touch it. Her reddish highlights flared under the glow of the moon. She looked stunning.

  She ran back to the truck and climbed into its bed. She moved quickly, sliding a large, dark green duffle bag from the front of the bed to the opened tailgate. I slowly walked back to the truck, letting my toes dig into the cool sand as I did. With a long zipping sound she poured the contents of the bag on the floor of the bed. Two pillows and two blankets quickly found themselves tucked into the form of a bed.

  “Sam, that’s not what I meant.” It was no use; she was no longer paying any attention to my voice. She then pulled one final blanket out and snapped it in the crisp air while she shot me a wanting glare. This blanket was blue and much thinner than the others. She swiftly wrapped it around her barely five foot frame. She straightened her back and cocked her hips to the side as she removed her bikini top from underneath the blanket. She let the top drop to her side and she motioned with her finger for me to come join her.

  Steam flickered from my shoulders and I closed my mouth with my hand. I hadn’t even realized it was wide open until I could literally taste the beach air. She laughed sweetly at me and took a step forward.

  “Sam…are you crazy?” I asked bluntly with my mind racing.

  “I thought you were a bad boy?” she teased back.

  “And I thought you were a good girl…” I stuttered out. She kneeled down slowly sliding her legs to her left and propped her curvy frame up with one hand. Her other arm draped along her breasts, holding the blanket in place.

  “Sometimes,” she whispered and let a long seductive breath escape her lips.

  “Come here Max it’s getting chilly.” I looked around us for any signs of other beach combers and realized I was stalling. Against my better judgment I climbed in the back of the truck. She silently pulled me down on top of her and ran her hand up the back of my neck, twisting her fingers in my hair.

  “I thought you were scared of me?” I sounded anxious.

  “Not tonight Max…not right now.” Her cooling breath cut along my chin and down my neck as the fire filled my pores.

  “Then why are you shaking?” I asked as I watched her eyes fill with the stars from above us.

  “Because I want you.”

  We spent the rest of the night in the back of the truck until the sunrise scolded us the next morning. We never fell asleep or spoke a word until that morning. We were one, slow and cautious for hours and when the moment was finally over, it seemed not nearly long enough. I didn’t want that sun to rise, no matter how amazing the colors were. I didn’t want to start another day buried in possible regrets. I only wanted Sam. I wanted her comforting embrace. I wanted her kisses. I wanted her love. And for the first time in a long while, I didn’t want to be alone.

  As the fluid purple skies filled with shining orange rays of light and soft burgundy clouds, I kissed her freckles along her stomach.

  “So how much trouble do you think we’re in for staying out all night?” I asked, breaking the silence. She sighed and stretched her arms and legs and wrinkled her nose.

  “A lot.” She started to laugh. “But I don’t care.” Honestly, neither did I.

  We slowly gathered our things, stopping only long enough to enjoy each other’s bodies as we dressed. I made it a point not to kiss her too much this morning in fear that I wouldn’t be able to stop. We finished up and hit the road not knowing what kind of punishment we had waiting for us. We both were very quiet on the drive home. There was however a ton of goofy smiles and major hand holding.

  However, in the back of my mind a thought kept raising its dirty little hand, disturbing the rest of the class. Sam was scared of me. Well, not me exactly but what I was capable of. I can’t say I blamed her but I still didn’t enjoy that thought. Could she still possibly feel that way now? After the last few hours we spent so close, was I still a monster? Part of me wanted to ask her but I was afraid of ruining this perfect moment. So I stuffed the little thought and his dirty hand to the back of the class, and the back of my mind.

  Our drive home ended with me stopping a few houses down from her house. We didn’t want to wake her parents; it was still a little early. With any luck they were still asleep. As she stepped from the truck and walked around to my open window, I realized something. I loved Sam. All five foot two of her. That thought should have made me so uncontrollably happy that I wouldn’t be able to sleep for a week but it didn’t. It scared me mostly. Not because I was afraid of committing to her or all the issues of letting someone totally inside your soul. No, I was scared that in my head I could still hear the thunder rolling somewhere. It was barely there, but it was still there. Asia was still there.

  “Good night Max.” She leaned inside the open window and kissed me passionately.

  “I mean good morning.” Her face blushed in a soft strawberry tone.

  “Good morning Sam.” I smiled big but it hid the ugly tr
uth. I loved Samantha Summers but I think I loved Asia as well.

  “Something wrong?” she asked still smiling.

  “Nothing. I just don’t want you to go yet.” My smile faltered.

  “You’re sweet.” She kissed me again. “I’ll call you later,” she said and then bounced off toward her house.

  “Okay,” I said with my own doubt choking me. I started the truck up and drove off for home with one single thought filling my head.

  I was a horrible person.

  Sparks_21

  ~Are You Happy Now? : Michelle Branch~

  Monday morning – 8:13 a.m. – August 28th.

  The worst thing about gossip is that it spreads like wildfire. A giant ball of half-truths that burn up everyone and everything in its path. Lies become truth and truth become vicious lies. I was learning this lesson the hard way.

  The day started sane enough with a quick breakfast and a ride to school courtesy of Samantha Summers, my newest muse.

  “Good morning,” Sam smiled as I slid into her car. I kissed her softly.

  “Morning. You get in trouble for being out all night?” I asked shyly.

  “Nope. My parents were still sound asleep.” Her smile faded as she spoke. Something was wrong.

  “Everything all right?”

  “I dreamt about you Max,” her voice was gentle and shy.

  “Am I already giving you nightmares?” I joked. Her eyes fell silent. I at least expected a smile at my dumb joke.

  “I dreamt of you leaving,” she said cold.

  “That’s weird.” I shuffled anxiously in my seat. “You trying to get rid of me already?”

  “No,” she said and then forced a half-hearted smile on her face. I thought about digging a little more but stopped myself at the last second. Besides, if I dug too deep, I may not like the answer I found.

  The ride to school was spent quietly side by side. Her face looked genuinely happy to be with me but there was something missing. A certain sparkle behind her eyes was gone. I wondered if I had anything to do with it. Her car came to a stop in the school parking lot and I was so lost in my thoughts that I almost didn’t notice when she started to exit the car.

  “Sam…wait,” I shouted. She sat back down quickly.

  “What is it?” her tone was unsure.

  “Don’t worry…” My hands brushed the sides of her face. “It was just a dream.” I looked at her determined and watched as her eyes filled with her special confidence. She nodded in agreement and kissed me slowly. As we stepped from her car, Marcus and Kai were waiting for us on the grass of the school lawn. They greeted us with smiles and playful teasing.

  “Howdy lovebirds!” Marcus shouted loud enough to embarrass Sam and she let go of my hand. I found it unusual that she let go so quickly.

  “They know already?” she asked annoyed.

  “Yeah, I talked to them late last night. Is there a problem?” I asked worried.

  “No problem,” she was lying. I tried to let it go. Kai shook my hand with a large goofy smile.

  “It’s going to be a great week brother.” He was obviously excited about the looming gig we had planned.

  “Sure is,” I agreed. My eyes spied Sam as she stood nervously looking around.

  “See you in biology,” she said just before she turned to run to her class.

  “Okay,” I said a little hurt. I watched her until my attention was torn back to Kai and Marcus.

  “You two looked awful cozy!” Kai teased.

  “Something’s wrong Kai.”

  “What do you mean?” he asked. We didn’t have time to get into it; we were going to be late for class.

  “I’ll tell you in class.” We started walking to first period when we were stopped by a couple over anxious girls.

  “Max, is it true?” one of them asked.

  “Is what true?” I was lost.

  “That you stole Devon Wahlberg’s girlfriend,” she said with a sick gossipy grin.

  “What?” I instantly was mad.

  “Yup, it’s all over school that he told you to stay away but you decided to sleep with her anyways.” The girl giggled and my hands almost reached out for her neck. Kai saw the murder in my eyes and jumped in just in time.

  “Alexis…you know that none of that is true,” he smiled.

  “But Toni said that she saw Max dropping Samantha off at her house first thing in the morning on Sunday…” she clung to her desperate half-truth. Kai looked at me and I shook my head like I had no idea what anyone was talking about.

  “Look, it’s not true, but if you come to our show on Friday night, maybe we’ll have some answers for you then,” he sounded like a used car salesman again.

  “Bring Toni too,” he winked. My stomach rolled and I stomped off to my classroom.

  “Wait up brother,” he called to me as he pushed through the couple girls.

  “What the hell is wrong with everybody this morning?” I snapped.

  “It’s a small school Max. You can’t hide things for very long around here,” he said with a sad smile.

  “And that crap you were spewing back there?” I said angry.

  “There is no such thing as bad press,” he joked. I didn’t find it funny.

  “There is when it comes to Sam’s reputation Kai,” I shouted. Maybe this was what she was upset about? Had this nonsense gotten back to her already? Kai and I were almost through the door of our class when his latest comment stopped me.

  “Uh oh,” he said under his breath. His eyes were focused down the hallway, so I pushed past him to see what was so wrong.

  “Uh oh.” It was all I could think of to say. Down the hall Devon had stopped Sam in front of her class and they were talking. I pushed forward but Kai’s long fingers wrapped around my arm and stopped me as the second bell rang.

  “Max, let her handle it.”

  “She needs…” My mouth froze by the next thing I saw. Sam slowly pulled a note from her notebook and handed it to him. This was followed by a quick hug and a kiss on his cheek. She then ran into her classroom. My blood literally boiled and Kai noticed the change in my temperature but ignored it.

  “Come on Max. I’m sure there’s a logical explanation for the note.” He didn’t sound convincing.

  “And the kiss?” I yelled back.

  “Umm…” he froze. We sat down in the classroom and I quickly pulled my cell phone out. My hands were shaking with heat and I was afraid I might damage my phone. I typed a text message as fast as I could and sent it to Sam.

  “WE NEED 2 TALK …” – Max

  “WHATS UP?” – Sam

  “I SAW THE NOTE…” – Max

  Nothing. She didn’t write back, so I waited…and waited. Kai watched as I sat nervously tapping my phone on the desk waiting. Finally I couldn’t wait any longer.

  “I NEED THE TRUTH!” – Max

  “NOT NOW MAX…” – Sam

  “Y NOT?” – Max

  “PLEASE DON’T STRESS…L8R.” – Sam

  She was gone and I was furious. Why was she shutting me out? What had I done wrong? Maybe I was over reacting? The hour crawled by slowly and Kai did his best to wrestle my stress with jokes but I was having none of it. My mind raced with the worst possible scenarios and I felt alone…again.

  Biology – 9:47 a.m.

  Sam was already at her desk when I entered the classroom. She watched me carefully as I sat down next to her. She leaned in to kiss me on my lips but I turned my head at the last moment and she barely caught the side of my cheek. It was flushed with heat as her soft lips cooled it for a split second. My mouth watered for hers and I felt embarrassed that I didn’t have the strength to stay focused on my anger.

  “So that’s how it’s going to be?” she said hard.

  “I need an explanation Sam,” I demanded as I sat there pouting.

  “And you’ll get one when you pull your head out of your ass.” She crossed her arms and her lips stretched into a thin line. I was stunned. I couldn’t b
elieve she was upset with me. How dare her!

  “Please explain what you were talking to Devon about,” I said as calm as I could.

  “Max, you’re overreacting,” she snapped.

  “It’s our first day as a couple and you’re hiding things from me,” I snapped back.

  “I am not hiding anything from you,” she sounded sweet again. It was the first sign that she knew that I was hurt by her actions.

  “This is a small school. I knew it would only be a matter of minutes before it got around that we were together now.” She seemed calmer.

  “Devon’s a big boy, he can handle it.” My words brimmed with anger again.

  “Yes, he is,” she paused. “But we have a history together.” Her words cut me like a knife.

  “Even though he hasn’t earned it lately, I thought he deserved a proper explanation about you and I.” She watched me closely as my hand burned hot. The pen I was holding began to heat up. Her hand slid gently over mine to settle the fire.

  “And?” I pouted.

  “And the word had already reached him this morning and I was prepared for that. I wrote him a letter explaining just how over he and I are.” I let my stubborn eyes find hers again.

  “That was me telling him it’s over. Done. For good Max,” she whispered.

  “Really?” I asked unsure.

  “Um-hmm.” Her big green eyes twinkled at me and I knew it was no use to try and hold onto my anger. I was crumbling now with guilt.

  “I’m sorry.” I leaned into her. “I’m still a little high from our weekend together and seeing you two like that brought me back down to earth a little.”

  “It’s fine. Tonight will be even better.” Her breathing increased as her hand ran along my leg.

  “Naughty,” I whispered. Then I kissed her quickly before the teacher caught us. Sam made a tiny growling noise which made me laugh.

  “I wrote you a song last night,” I bragged. She turned red instantly.

  “For me?”