Hanging On

Right

sorry, its a little short, but its better than nothing!!:) I hope you like it!!! Vote, comment, fan....whatever floats your boat;)

“Will you just get on the stupid horse?” I snapped, gesturing to poor Plum. We were getting read y to god down to the creek, and I was standing next to Zippy, who was already saddled and ready to go. Tucker shook his head stubbornly.

“I am not getting on that thing.” he said, casting a weary look at Plum, who stood lazily on the other side of the fence, her eyes half shut. I pursed my lips, unwilling to let him go scot free.

“Fine, then ride with me.” I said, gesturing to Zippy.

“I’ll ride in the front and you can ride on the back.” I said, putting my hands on my hips. Tucker raised his eye brows.

“No way, we’ll break it’s back.” He said, looking satisfied. I rolled my eyes.

“It will not. She’s strong. So get on.” I said, swinging my leg over the saddle and scooting forward to leave room for him. I looked down at him expectantly, and he sighed.

“You’ll be the death of me.” he said dramatically, before approaching us. He eyed Zippy wearily, as if expecting her to suddenly take off, despite the fact that she was still tied and half asleep.

With a little bit of somewhat comical struggling, Tucker managed to get on the horse, his chest pressed against my back. I sucked in a ragged breath, realizing that for the next half an hour I would be riding with Tucker pressed against my back.

I felt his hands slide around my waist.

“I’m pretty sure this role is supposed to be reversed, you know, with you clinging to me for dear life.” He teased, his breath ticking my neck. I giggled and leaned forward to untie Zippy. I tried, and failed, to ignore the way my body leaned against Tucker’s when I did that, and I took a deep breath, trying to calm myself down. I could feel Tucker’s heard beat against my back as I nudged Zippy’s sides.

Tucker’s grip on my waist tightened when she started moving and I giggled. "Careful, she has a habit of suddenly bolting." I teased.

"Ha ha." he said, but I could hear the amusement in his voice. I smiled to myself as we rode.

We finally arrived at the creek, and I chuckled when Tucker didn't move.

"Are you gonna get off?" I asked, and he grumbled something that I didn't quite catch. He moved his hands so he was holding onto the saddle and clumsily pulled his leg over the horse. About half way, he lost his grip and fell from the horse, landing heavily on the ground. I looked down at him and started laughing hysterically, leaning forward so my face was in Zippy's mane as tears streamed down my face.

"Oh my god, that was the best thing ever." I gasped when I had finally pulled myself together. Scowling, he got off the ground and looked up at me.

"Well, are you coming?" He asked turning his back on me. I chuckled once more and slid off the horse. I looked at the water, but didn't really feel like swimming. I sighed and flopped down on the soft grass, letting the sun soak into my face instead of the water.

I heard Tucker sit down next to me, and I opened my eye to look at him, then immediately squeezed it shut again.

He had stripped off his t shirt was sitting next to me, very closely, with his bare chest exposed. He wasn’t bulky and brawny, rather his abs were more subtle, his chest less wide but defiantly muscular. But it wasn’t just that. It was the scars that laced over his skin, over his shoulders and his chest. I couldn’t stand it.

I sat up and pulled my knees up to my chest. tucker looked at me.

"What's wrong?" he murmured, touching my leg and sending shivers up my spine. I shook my head. "Its nothing." I said, but he just raised an eye brow. "Tell me." he said softly, tugging on my hand so I would lie next to him. I did so, propping myself up on my elbow. His face was so close I had to fight the urge to kiss him.

"Are you sure about this?" I asked, gesturing between us. his eye brows pulled together and a strange look passed over his face.

"What do you mean?" he asked, tilting his head so he could see my face better.

"I just don’t want you to do something you'll regret. I mean, I don’t feel like I'm really your type of girl." I said, looking away from his black gaze. He put one hand on my cheek until I looked back at him.

"Don’t you remember what I said?" he asked, continuing when I didn't answer.

"I wanted to kiss you for a long time. I don’t know it is about you that makes me want to move fast, and tell you every little detail that would scare you away. Obviously, I'm not real good with the whole feelings thing, but…I don’t know, I feel like I need you."

I stared at him,  a little shocked. I had never heard him say so much in one sitting. Also, it was one of the sweetest things anyone had ever said to me. I could see the sincerity in his eyes, and smiled. I realized for the first time that ever since he had arrived, I had felt something towards Tucker. I just hadnt realized it until last night. Now that I thought about it, I realized that despite the fact that we had only been 'together' for less than a day, and I wasn’t entirely sure where our relationship would take us, I could see myself falling for Tucker. We may not of been kissing the entire time I had known him, but he had been living with us for over a month. It felt like I should have been kissing him the entire time.

I leaned down and pressed my lips to his, intending for just a small peck on the lips. Instead, he gripped my waist and pulled me on top of him, then rolled so  was underneath him, his hands on either side of my head so he wasn’t crushing me.

I smiled at his sudden move and wrapped my arms around his neck to hold him closer. He pulled back a little.

"I just don’t want to hurt you. It's not a promise that I can make." he said even as he lied on top of me. I looked into his black eyes. "I know that you won't."

"You shouldn’t be so sure."

"You should trust me." I said sternly, pressing my lips back to his before he could say anything else. It effectively distracted him, and he kissed my back, sucking lightly on my bottom lip. I parted my lips and felt his tongue slide over mine. I ran my hands down his scarred chest and felt his shudder a little.

We eventually broke apart, and I stood up.

"Come on, we should go home. My mom will be home soon." I said. He made a face. "Do I have to ride the horse?" He asked. I laughed and nodded.

"Yep, and no complaining. I have to teach you how to ride." I muttered the last part as I pulled my self onto Zippy and waited for Tucker to clumsily climb onto the back. It was all worth it just for him t put his hands on my waist as we made our way home.

It seemed like it had been so much more than one day. I didn't want to fall so hard for him, the way I knew I would. Because as much as I wanted to believe he wouldn’t hurt me, I knew that I should take his warning seriously. But despite the fact that he had been cold and cruel to me, I couldn’t help but know that he was so much more than the boy on probation. He was my friend, and my best friend. After only a month, he understood me so much better than even Emily ever could. He got under my skin in all the right ways. I worried that we were going too fast. But I could also feel that, no, there was something more. He wasn’t just some guy; otherwise I wouldn’t be doing what I was. He was different. He was scarred, he was confusing, he was irritable, cranky, impatient, and harsh.

But I knew the other side. The side that stroked my hair when I was crying, the side that saved me from scummy guys, the side that held me close when I was scared. I had seen it, and I had felt it. I knew it was there. But I also knew that he was damaged. He came with baggage, and it was heavy. That didn’t frighten me, though. I wanted to be there for him. I also knew that he probably wouldn’t let me.

I pushed that thought away. I would not think about that. We hadn’t even been together for a full day yet! I sighed and leaned back into his chest as we rode towards home, the sun beginning to set.