After the Ink [PUBLISHED]

Chapter Eleven

I wake up with a nervous pit in my stomach. Getting ready and driving to school doesn't help with that feeling and I'm stuck anxiously waiting for journalism so I can talk to Jacob, or at least tell him I want to talk to him. I know what I want to ask and say to him and hopefully it will go smoothly.

And as it turns out, I don't have to wait long. As soon as I park, I see Jacob's truck pull in to the lot. I hurriedly gather my things and catch him before he leaves his truck.

"Hey," I say, tapping his shoulder.

He understandably gives me a confused look. "Hey, Lace," he says hesitantly. "What's up?"

Everything I want to say is suddenly jumbled in my mind. I take a deep breath and try to focus. "I need to talk to you."

I can tell he is suspicious. He glances around before looking at me again. "Your new friends aren't going to gang up on me, are they?"

"Why, are you afraid of them?" I ask, amused. Dylan would get a kick out of that one.

"Hell no," he shakes his head. "What do you want to talk about?"

I bite my lip nervously. "I—uh, I want to talk to you about, um, us."

"Us?"

Us. It sounds so different when it comes out of his mouth. I lean against his truck. "Do you ever think about covering your tattoo?" I ask him, pointing to his arm.

His eyes trail down to it. "I've thought about it," he says slowly. "Just don't know what I would cover it with."

"Me too," I admit. "Part of me doesn't want to cover it though."

"What do you mean?"

I have to get it off my chest. Dylan is right. I am miserable without Jacob and it makes me feel gross, but I can't help it. "Have you been with other girls since we broke up?"

"What? No," he shakes his head. "I promise, I haven't."

Jacob isn't a great liar, but he isn't the worst. There are moments when I know he's lying and others where he surprises me pretty well. I try to detect any trace of fabrication, but it seems like he is telling the truth. "Do you mean what you say when you want to get back together with me?"

"I mean every word, Lace," he says firmly. "What's with all these questions? Are you okay?"

My heart is beating fast in my chest. "I don't know," I shake my head. Visions of when we were together flash in my mind and the kiss from his soccer game plays over and over. It's like every part of my being craves his touch and I can't stop myself from feeling that way.

"Don't make me regret this."

Before he can answer, I take his face in my hands and pull him in for a kiss. His lips meet mine eagerly and in a single second everything I tried to build up to protect me from him comes crashing down. His hands cup my face before they trail down to my waist to bring me closer to him. Every second feels like an hour, then time disappears. I know it's wrong, I know he'll hurt me, but I need to feel his lips against mine again.

Neither of us speak when we pull apart. We only stare at each other and catch our breath.

Jacob smiles and wraps his arms around me. "Jesus, Lace."

I put my arms around him too, but it's different than every other time I've hugged him.

"Let's go before we're late to class," he says, stepping away from his truck.

I'm not ready to walk with him, so I say, "Actually, I think I forgot my book in my car. You can go ahead."

"You sure?"