Back to 17, Abandon my EX

9

The first day of school seemed to just fly by so fast. Although I already knew Kate was in my Drama class, I was happy to learn that I shared Geography with her also. Sam was in my Math and English classes. Unfortunately, I discovered that Lucas was also in my History and Biology classes. The good part was though that after what happened this morning, he was avoiding me all together.

After the sixth period, I wandered down to the soccer field alone. Bridget had told me she would catch the bus home with Amber and Kate had flirted her way into getting kissing boy from the party to drive her home.

I'd never watched Sam play soccer in high school. I only really saw him play when Bridget would force me out of bed at 3am during the telecast of the World Cup, but I couldn't take my eyes off of him as he weaved the ball through the cones that the coach had set up for practice. I was so impressed by how much skill he had and how hard he worked.

Once the team had finished their training, Sam hung back to talk to the coach as they packed up the equipment, and he called me over to join them.

"Coach, this is Veronica," he introduced me, smiling proudly, sweat dripping from his face.

"Well, it's nice to finally put a face to the name. Nice to meet you Veronica", Mr Taylor, Sam's coach, says to me while patting Sam on the back, "Don't worry, he only says good things about you." Sam laughs nervously, and I blush, wanting to know what Sam has told his coach about me.

Sam says goodbye to his coach, grabs his bag, and we make our way back up to the now empty school.

"I need to shower so badly. Do you mind if I just quickly go to the change rooms? Or do you need to get home soon? You know how to get ready for that hot date you have tonight?" He asks me.

"Shower here, that way you're not stinking the car up all the way home," I laugh.

"It also gives you the opportunity to wonder what I look like naked," He teases me, a playful smile crossing his face.

"No need to wonder, I've already seen you naked" I confess, stopping him in his tracks.

"When?"

"Cosmopolitan Magazine, June edition, 2010, they did a photoshoot of male athletes who play ball sports, something about raising awareness of mens health. Really, it was just an excuse to look at pro athletes in the nude. You were holding a soccer ball very strategically to cover your ah, manliness though, so I don't worry, I haven't seen it all, just enough." I informed him proudly. "But I do know that you have a birthmark, almost in the shape of a heart right here" I point high up on his left thigh, he smiles widely, taking hold of my hand and brings it over to his right side, the picture must have been flipped.

"Actually, my birthmark is here" He corrects me, grabbing my finger and guiding it to his right thigh. "You must have studied that picture a lot to be able to notice something so small" He laughs

"Bridget put it up on my fridge, in fact it's still there, so yeah, I see it every day. I did have one boyfriend who was threatened by its presence. It didn't help that Bridget liked to rub it into him that we knew you. In the end, he gave me an ultimatum, either the picture goes or he would and, like I said, it's still there", I told him. He reaches up and runs his thumb softly along my bottom lip.

"You're gorgeous, Veronica Kreslin" He tells me softly before kissing my forehead and continuing his walk to the change rooms. He has this weird effect on me, like I feel my stomach fill with butterflies every time he touches me. I have never, in my life, felt like that with any man.

~~~

Sam drove me back to my house with the promise that he would be back at 6pm. Bridget's door was closed as I passed it to get to my room. It was odd because Bridget never closed her door. She once told me that she liked being able to know what everyone in the house was up to, she had a strong fear of missing out.

I stepped into my own room and browsed through my wardrobe, trying to find something to wear that actually looked cute but nothing was standing out, just the oversized bland dresses. Maybe Bridget had something I could borrow. Bridget was very much a girly-girl, still is really. She loves wearing dresses and skirts. It was most likely Bridget that convinced me to buy the two mini skirts I had in my wardrobe, considering she owned thousands of them.

I made my way back over to Bridget's room. I could hear music coming from inside, so I knew she was home. I knocked once on her door and then opened it, walking into her room.

"Bridge do have a-" My words were cut short by what my eyes stumbled upon, Amber straddling Bridget on Bridget's bed, their lips locked together in heated passion. This wasn't the first time I had caught Bridget making out with a woman. My sister was a lesbian after all. I'd been aware of it since she was 18, but what surprised me was the fact that she was kissing Amber.

I knew Amber quite well and in the whole time I had known her she had never once shown any romantic interest towards Bridget. After they finished high school, Amber was accepted to an interstate university. She and Bridget still kept in touch though, often visiting each other throughout the years, but the visits became few and far between once Amber met and married her husband, well now ex-husband, Elijah. When Bridget married Carol, I was surprised that Amber was unable to make it to the wedding, claiming she had work commitments that she couldn't get out of. This upset Bridget, but Carol was over-the-moon about the fact that Amber wouldn't be present at their wedding. Carol was strongly jealous of the friendship between Bridget and Amber.

Amber jumped off Bridget in a flash, moving to the centre of the room, her eyes cast awkwardly on the carpet, her face flushed as the tears began to run down her soft cheeks. Bridget, on the other hand, looked at me with fiery anger building inside her, her hands balled into fists as she stood from the bed and came up to my face.

"Get out", She screamed, her whole body trembling.

"Bridget, I'm so sorry, I shouldn't have just barged in, but there's nothing to be embarrassed about. It's no different to when you walked in on me and Lucas kissing" I try my best to reassure them.

"Get the f**k out of my room", Bridget yells even louder. I hear Dad's heavy footsteps making his way down the hall.

"Girls, what is going on? Bridget, I can hear you screaming from all the way out the back and if I can hear you, then the neighbours can too. They will think we are getting robbed and call the police. I've had a long day at work and the last thing I want to do is come home to two teenagers who are tearing each other's heads off." Amber takes this as her cue to run from the house, leaving Bridget even more angry as she shoots daggers at me. If looks could kill I'd be six feet under.

"Sorry Dad, it was completely my fault. I take the blame for this. I'm so sorry Bridget, I just wanted to borrow a dress to wear tonight," I stumbled through my apology and exited the room, slinking my way back to my own room and flopping down heavily on my bed. I feel like complete s**t, here I am getting excited about a date tonight while my sister is feeling like she needs to hide from the world.

"Are you going out with Kate tonight, Veronica?" My dad is now standing in my doorway, arms crossed, looking at me sternly. I know exactly where this is leading.

"Umm no, not with Kate"

"Veronica, we talked about this last year. This is the most important year of your life. I don't want you throwing it away because of Lucas. That boy is bad news and I will not have him dragging you down a path of destruction. You've worked way too hard to just slack off. I'm putting my foot down, Veronica. You can see him on the weekends when you're here, if you must, but during the week you're to focus on your studies. My father strongly disliked Lucas, calling him the bad seed, among other now humours names.

"Actually, I broke up with Lucas" a small mile appeared on my Dad's face momentarily, this was music to his ears, "Sam asked me out and, seeing as it's only the first day of school and teachers don't even assign homework on the first day I thought that you could make an exception to your 'no school night' rule and just let me go out just this once, please" I'm trying my best to sweet talk him, I never even considered I'd have to run the date past my Dad first when I made it considering that it's been years since I've had to ask permission just to leave the house.

"Sam? That's the British kid with that new truck?" He asks me

"Yep, that's him"

"Be home by 9" He tells me as he walks away.

I look at the clock on my bedside table and realise I only have an hour before Sam will be here. I settle on one of the bland dresses I own and make my way to the bathroom so I can shower. Standing under the cascading water my thoughts are filled with Bridget and how she must be feeling right now. I shouldn't even be going out tonight, I should just stay home and make things right with Bridget. I hate that I am the cause of her anger.

When I stepped out of the shower, I saw a blue, satin, knee-length dress hanging from the towel rack. Bridget must have snuck it in here. It fits me like a glove, and it's so beautiful. My sister has excellent style. I wander back out into the hall, noticing that Bridget's door is now open but I still knock anyway. She's lying on her bed reading, she doesn't even look up at me when she hears me knock.

"Thank you, Bridge, you lending me the dress. It means the world to me." I'm trying my hardest to let her see that nothing has changed.

"I didn't do it for you, I did it for Sam, he shouldn't have to go out with a slob" She remarks bitterly, tearing her eyes away from her book to view me in her dress, I spin around for her and she gives me a small smile.

"I love you Bridget, nothing will ever change that". I try once again to reassure her but her eyes glance back down to her book, I turn to leave but am surprised when I hear her speak again.

"It's not what you think, we were just practicing kissing....for when we get boyfriends, we want to be good kissers for them" She stumbles over her own lie but I'm not going to call her out on it.

"Well, it's normal, and it's natural, and it's nothing to be ashamed of" A statement that I had reaffirmed to her many times when she first came out to me and when she had come out to our highly homophobic Mother, which was met with such venom.

"You should practice kissing with Sam tonight, he'd like that a lot" She quickly tries to take the focus off herself.

"Oh would he now? And how exactly do you know this?" I question her, but she doesn't give me an answer, just a coy smile. "You sure you're OK if I go out tonight? I don't have to, I can just stay here and we can talk."

"I want you to go out. Sam's a good guy, I want him to become your boyfriend" She swoons, Bridget had an obsession with romantic movies.

"Whoa, let's not jump the gun here, it's just one date that was won through a game of mini-golf and you're forgetting, Sam Lions doesn't do girlfriends, he's a player, always has been, always will be" I laugh as I exit her room, the thought of Sam becoming my boyfriend is hilarious.