Flowers by Nichole Hall (the unexpected everything .TXT) 📕

at each other and duck out, both not really ones for confrontation. My eyes wander past an excited Lucky, past a red faced Clarissa, or genuinely shocked Trina. They land right on my target, whom is staring back at me. So much rage and desire run through me, even the look I send Kevin knocks his defenses down a bit. He feels it too, the time for the air to come clean, the time for us to all face the facts that people in this room are a lot shadier than what they led on. It pisses him off, so much so his jaw clenches. Before the logical part of my brain kicks in, I take a few steps in that direction only to stop myself. People don’t need to know our business, especially since Mandy aired out enough today. 

“Charlie, baby, I can explain.” Mandy’s sweet talking voice exclaims. Charlie spreads his arms wide, laughing a humorless laugh, looking just like Kevin does when he shuts down. Interestingly, Charlie wears evidence of hurt. Falling for Mandy is so easy, I am sure, that he never thought she would be one of those “girls”. Probably ruining him for future relationships. “Look, Clarissa told Trina and I that Kevin wanted a relationship with her, but Willow was saying bad things about her to Kevin. In result, it was just giving Clarissa a bad image. So Clarissa asked me today if I could get Willow to admit the things she saying in front of you. Baby, I lied about using you and all that other stuff. Don’t you see?”

“Why would you need to lie? The truth is, I did use you for sex.” Charlie grabs Mandy’s face hard, pushing their lips together with enough pressure their teeth clank on impact loudly. “But now, I think I’ve satiated my need for the hopeless female.”

“Baby-”

“Hey Mandy. GET. THE. FUCK. OUT. You two also!” Charlie points in my direction, but then I turn around and see Trina and Clarissa making a beeline for the door, Mandy not too far behind. And then there was one female left, with no best friend and no mother, but that didn’t matter, because I have these guys. 

When there’s a loud inhumane roar somehow coming out of Charlie’s body, the other four boys appear at his side. Kevin only offers a brief glance. I mouth the words go   to him. He nods, and the four of them disappear into the kitchen with all the alcohol. 

Underestimated

ch. 15

In the name of guy time, I walked home. Ten miles to be exact, in hot and humid weather. Not that I am complaining, okay yeah I really am. It was a bad idea to wear pants today, but at least they were loose enough to roll up just below my knees. Wearing shoes, now that was a smart idea. By the time I walked through the front door, sweaty and tired to the bone, grandma took one look at me, set a glass of water (more like slammed) in front of me at the table saying one word, “explain.”

No use in lying to her, so she got the whole story. Even the cuss words and to my surprise, she didn’t flinch once. She just nodded her head the whole time like she understood what happened, and that she really expected it. When the entire story was finished, she took a seat across the table and looked at me, really looked at me.

“How do you feel about all this?”

“You sound like a therapist.”

“Willow.” She chided. Okay, okay. It’s clear she has something up her sleeve, so I go along.

“Honestly, I am mad and not mad at the same time.” True.

“Mad about what specifically?” It takes a moment of pause to dig deep inside and find out if Mandy upset me because of how she treated me or how she used Charlie. In the end, I concluded that in all honesty, I wasn’t the least bit taken back about how our friendship ended. That says something, but I just don’t know what. So I told grandma, hoping for some clarification. Instead, I get another question. “Are you upset at how that girl used Charlie?”

“Yes.”

“And you figured it out, just too late?”

“Yes.” She smiles.

“Willow, I think you have known all along that the friendship between you and Mandy has been artificial, at best.” I open my mouth to argue that she was always there for me when I broke down about my dad and mom, but grandma raises her hand to shut me off. “Think about this way Willow, when did you always call Mandy?”

“When I needed a distraction.” I say without pause. “But..” I did the same thing with Kevin, so is this thing with him artificial too? Or is it because I feel he is hiding something, deep and connected to me somehow and I want to know?

“But what, dear?” I look into her pity gaze, wishing it wasn’t there and trying to decide just how to tell her my previous thoughts.

“What’s the difference between Mandy and Kevin, if I called him last week to distract me?”

She doesn’t answer right away, only points first to her chest and then her head. “You’ll see the difference one day.” Sliding back the chair, grandma reaches for her walker and heads towards the kitchen. Early dinner night because of knitting class. Just as she reaches the entrance, grandma pauses. “Remember what I said about Kevin being able to understand you more than you know?”

“Yeah.”

“Well, who invited whom first last Friday?” She doesn’t give me a chance to respond, just keeps walking through the kitchen. A few minutes later some pots and pans move around and chopping sounds follow. I stay glued to my chair. 

It was Kevin who asked first. 

****

Kevin called and said he’ll pick me up by nine. With grandma’s riddle, which is so unlike her to not give what she wants to say straight out, I thought long and hard about my friendship with Mandy. True, every time I felt suffocated and wanted to forget, I’d call her. We would raid her dad’s hidden stash of liquor and drink into oblivion, but other than that we shared few memories. The ice cream parlor is the only thing we always did together. Then again, the way Mandy always turned around to survey the room made more sense. She was always looking for an in, and found one with Charlie that day I left my phone. I caught on though, and she was thrown to the wolves. An outcast. No longer Charlie’s girlfriend, and no longer with our group. No doubt she will form some kind of bond with Clarissa over shared hatred of me, but the thing is, who really gives a shit?

As the day progresses on, it’s quite clear, that I am not one suffering from this. I throw on a black halter top and some shorts after the shower, abruptly forgetting all about Mandy and her posse. The black halter dips low enough my back dimples peek out. With one stretchy, thin string cutting across mid back to hold up the girls in front. My jean shorts are rolled up high, not where my buttcheeks are showing, but enough to make a boy drool. More specifically, Kevin. I throw on some quick mascara and eyeliner and pink tinted lip gloss from MAC, leaving my hair down in it’s natural waves. Black strappy sandals complete the outfit, just as a horn honks outside. Grandma is already gone to her knitting club, every Friday night as usual. 

I step outside only to stop shortly and quickly before continuing. Charlie awaits in his truck, alone. He gives me a long appreciative glance at my outfit, adding a whistle before driving on. We stay quiet for a little, but the anger against Mandy for treating Charlie like crap wins over. 

“I’m sorry how she treated you, and that I didn’t learn about it until later.” Charlie chuckles. “What?”

He shakes his head still laughing. “I asked Kevin if I could pick you up so I could say ‘thanks.’ He said you would blame yourself before I got the chance.”

“That boy is too observant.” I grumble.

“Yeah, he is.” Charlie checks out my outfit again adding a wink. The insinuation is not lost on me.

“You are a good person, Charlie. I’m sorry I doubted you from the beginning when it should have been Mandy.” He pauses.

“Can you do me a favor Willow?”

“Sure.” Charlie’s eyes bore into my own, nothing other then determination lingers there.

“Don’t give up on Kevin. We both underestimated the fight in you.” He gives a lopsided grin, pulling into the driveway of Lucky’s house.

The party isn’t quite a party yet. These things don’t start until well past midnight, but the guys wanted to pre-game and get as much alcohol use as a possible before it’s all gone. Lucky swirled me around when I walked in. Herman gave me his big bear hug that I adore. Luke just gave me a normal side hug, but Kevin. Kevin ate me alive with his eyes. It literally stopped me in my tracks. The burn in them, it seriously made my shorts wet within two seconds of being there. And Charlie didn’t lie, Kevin observed every inch of my skin. Slowly perusing from head to toe, the shine in his eyes burned brighter and brighter until he finally pulled my arms to him. Lifting up my legs to wrap around his waist with one hand, and pulling my hair with the other, he starts walking us to an unknown destination. “We’ll be right back.” He says to no one in particular. 

There’s a bunch of “uh-huh’s” and “sure’s” that follow. 

“My hair.” It’s a weak protest at best. Golden flecks laugh at those words.

“Don’t worry, you look better with sex hair.”

Kevin locks the door to a guest room. It’s nothing like the ones in his house. Instead this only holds a bed and desk lamp on the ground. No couches, not very much room, but very homely and lived in.

Setting me down on my back in no rush, Kevin crawls on top. My legs wrap around his waist again as his lips meet mine in soft, unhurried motions. My fingers find his back, caressing and squeezing, wanting him closer and closer. Our tongues finally meet, and even their dance today is the tango. Nothing fast, everything slow and nerve wracking. My need for him builds and builds, but Kevin does nothing to satisfy my thirst. His teasing kisses cause my pelvis to repeatedly rub against his hard on. I moan and moan, yet all of our clothes still remain on and our lips never stop touching. Kevin leisurely pulls away. Our accelerated breathing takes precedence over the speakers now playing music. Reaching out, Kevin caresses my left cheek. Just the notion has me closing my eyes in comfort more than anything else. 

“Willow...Look at me.” I do. Shirtless, Kevin leans over starting to scatter kisses along my jaw and neck knowing just how much that turns me on, how much it makes me moan and yearn from more. I scratch at his back, asking for more but he shakes his head just as a soft peck lands on my shoulder. This tender side