Four
2005 Words
▪︎ Stolen Kisses ▪︎
"You kissed Erik!"
Miles hisses, his voice flaring with anger.
The look on his face is one of the reasons I didn't want to tell him. A look of disappointment and disbelief.
"Sabrina slashed the tyres of your car? She talked trash about me at the club? You kissed her boyfriend at the club? And you didn't bother to tell me any of this?"
I move closer towards him but he takes a step back.
"I know I should have told you and-"
"But you didn't! You didn't bother to tell me yet I call you my best friend!"
"That night at the club," I explain. "I heard Sabrina talking s**t about you and Trevor when you left the club. I got so mad about it and decided to get back at her! That's why I kissed her boyfriend! And that's why she slashed the tyres of my car!"
He narrows his eyes on me, his facial features screaming anger.
"You did all that because of me!"
I knew he would get angrier if he found that I did all that because of him. It's the main reason why I didn't tell him.
"When will you stop it, Ruby! When will you stop defending me from Sabrina!" He squawks. "No matter what you do, some people will never be okay with me being gay! And that's fine! I'm totally fine with that! What I'm not fine with is you treating me like a little damsel in distress! You don't have to keep acting like you're my knight in shining armour! Stop going around attacking people and making out with their boyfriends in the name of protecting me! It's not cute anymore!"
I'm sorry for keeping this from him. But I'm not sorry for kissing Sabrina's boyfriend.
"She talked trash about you and your boyfriend!"
"So making out with her boyfriend makes it okay? Attacking her at the parking lot makes it okay? We hate Sabrina because she's a big bully," he pauses. "But at this point, I'm starting to wonder if you're any different..."
Miles walks away, his bag swinging on his back. He climbs into his dad's car and they drive away.
Standing at the parking lot, a pang of guilt surges through me. I should have told him the truth. I should have told him I made out with his crush. I regret not telling him all this but one thing I don't regret is making out with Erik.
My phone buzzes.
An email from Prof. Smith pops up on the screen.
An invitation to The Grand Launch of The Ford Firm.
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"That's great news!"
Alex is over the moon when I tell him about getting an invitation to the prestigious event.
I knew he would be excited. For the longest time, this is what we have been planning for. Waiting for. And now the opportunity has presented itself right in front of our eyes.
I will finally meet Harvey Ford.
"You don't sound excited," Alex says, concern laced in his voice.
"I have a lot on my mind right now," I sigh. "How can I be excited when I know you have a stalker out there?"
"I'm locked up indoors," he says. "I will be fine. Plus, that's not an excuse to not celebrate this great news! You should come to my place. I'll cook."
"You're a horrible cook, Alex. I'll pass."
I hang up when we say our goodbyes and toss my phone on the passenger's seat.
It's a cold and chilly evening.
I should probably drive home and sit in the comfort of my couch with a mug of hot coffee clutched in my hand. But I don't.
Instead, I step out of my car and bolt straight to The Art Room.
I love painting.
It's so relaxing and relieving to the mind and soul. It's a trick tool that helps me take the burden off my brain. With everything that's going on, I need this.
The room is peacefully quiet.
Shutting the door as I enter is the only sort of noise there is in the room. I hang my bag and take off my brown boots.
Only two students are present and they are sketching on their painting boards. I pick a seat at the corner and grab my painting tools.
I completely shut everything out and start painting on the board. It feels like I'm in a whole new world where I'm not Ruby Rey. Where I'm not the girl who hurts her best friend. Where I'm not the girl who makes out with someone's boyfriend knowingly. Where I'm not the girl who blackmails the professor to get what she wants.
Where I am just myself...
Time flies real quick. A couple kissing deeply is what I was able to sketch one hour later. A glance at it takes me back to that night at the club. It takes me back to Erik's lips...
It's crazy to me how I can't get a college boy out of my head. He's a boy. He's a boy for f***s sake! He still lives with his mom and he has a girlfriend! He's not in any way close to being my type but here I am thinking about him. Obsessing over him. Painting him.
When I made out with him that Sunday night, I didn't know that s**t would have a long-term effect on me. I didn't know I would think about him endlessly. But I keep replaying the escapades of that night in my head. Every single scene is on repeat. It's the reason I sketched this couple on this painting. Because I can't get his passionate kisses out of my head!
"f**k it!"
I grab the ugly painting and turn it into a crumbled piece of paper. It's a painting of pain. It reminds me of the blunt rejection. It reminds me of Sabrina. It reminds me of Erik. The boy that I'm trying so hard to get off my head. But most of all, it reminds me that I may lose my best friend because of that stupid night full of stolen kisses.
I toss the crumpled paper into the trash can and bolt out of the room.
I strut past the empty hallways, leading directly to the main exit door. Suddenly, a hand grips my arm roughly and presses me against the wall.
"Erik?"
His eyes darken dangerously.
"Sabrina has nothing to do with the slashed tyres! Stay away from her!'
I bite my lip, pulling him closer to me.
"Or what!"
His eyes travel down to my lips. He's standing so close to me I can feel his breathe on my skin. He steps back and curses.
"Stay the f**k away from me!" He hisses.
"Is that what you want?"
I get closer but he takes a step back, glaring at me in disgust.
"Yes, that's what I want. I want you to stay away from me and my girlfriend. People who use others for their evil agenda are people you should stay far far away from."
Those words pouring out of his mouth sting. The same mouth that devoured the life out of my lips.
"I didn't use you! I kissed you. You kissed me back! That's what happened!"
"You are not even sorry, are you?"
He stares at me without blinking, standing stiff from a distance. He glances away and shakes his head. Just when he's about to turn and leave, I blurt out,
"I'm not sorry that I kissed you!"
But even those words are not enough to wipe off the anger and disgust on his face. This boy hates me. He hates my guts. He hates seeing me. He hates me.
"I'm sorry I kissed you back." He says bluntly. "That should never have happened..."
His words slice my heart into pieces.
"Can I ask a favour, Ruby?"
I nod silently.
"I want my denim jacket back."
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It's raining outside.
The storm roars, the rain battering the windows and roof.
I'm wearing the denim jacket. Erik's denim jacket. A birthday present he got from his perfect little girlfriend, Sabrina.
I have grown attached to it. I have grown to love it. I love the soft scent of it. I love the rough feel of it. I love the warmth of it. But most of all, I love the memory of it.
And now Erik wants me to give it back.
I'm sure Sabrina is behind this. She demanded that he takes it away from me. I thought of never giving it back to get back at her but I'm tired of the drama. As Miles said, it's not cute anymore.
I will just give back the jacket to put an end to all this unnecessary drama. There is enough drama in my life and I don't need more.
I pour myself another glass of red wine and sink back on the cosy couch, watching the rain stain the windows.
I love watching the pouring of rain and the sound it comes with. Alex calls this habit "weird" and it makes no sense to me how he isn't fascinated with the rain and its rumble.
Despite hating the cold weather, Miles is also obsessed with the rain like me. I can not count the nights we have spent sitting by the window and watching the rain in amusement. Conversations on a rainy night are ecstatic.
Miles is ecstatic.
He's a colourful human being. He shines a little light on every life he touches. He's a rainbow that goes around leaving traces of colour on every path he crosses. He's always happy and laughing. Always trying to c***k a joke every chance he gets. Always trying to brighten up everyone's day even on his dark days.
I miss Miles. I miss my best friend.
We should be on a phone call right now, laughing our asses off like immature pieces of s**t. But he's still mad at me. And we are still not talking. I tried calling him earlier but all the calls went straight to voice mail. He has not bothered to respond to my thread of desperate texts.
And even though I am solely to blame, I can't help but hate Sabrina Stunner even more. I hate her. I hate her loose mouth. I hate how she talks trash about my best friend. I don't understand why the f**k she hates Miles! Who in their right mind hates Miles! He's the sweetest boy breathing!
Yet Sabrina Stunner can't stand him because he's gay. She's a stinking homophobic piece of s**t. She has been bullying Miles since the first day in college. She always made snarky comments about how he walks and talks and dresses. I didn't find any of that s**t funny so I called her out. That's how Sabrina became my sworn enemy. And that's how Miles and I became best friends!
The doorbell rings, forcing me out of my sea of thoughts. With a glass of wine clutched in my hand, I get up to fetch the door.
My jaw sags in disbelief at the sight of Alex.
He's standing at my doorstep, shivering and soaking wet.
"What the hell are you doing here!"
"Thank you for the warm welcome." He storms inside.
He takes off the dripping wet jacket and dumps it at the door. Glaring at him, I pick it up and hang it. This is why I can't live in the same house as Alex. And I don't know why the f**k he would show up at my house this late.
"We have a big problem!" He pants.
"Get to the point, Alex!"
He sighs. "I was right. Someone is after us..."
That brief statement is enough to make my heart drop.
"Someone broke into my house."
He pauses, a sense of dread gnawing at me.
"Everything is gone!"
"Even the laptop?"
"Even the laptop."
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- Writer
